MULTAN SULTANS VS. KARACHI KINGS: PAK T20 LEAGUE 2021, MATCH 16 | PREDICTION AND FANTASY CRICKET TIPS
In the 16th match of the Pak T20 League 2021, Multan Sultans are up against defending champions Karachi Kings at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Thursday evening.
Multan Sultans struggled in the initial round-robin matches of the competition before the break and are placed 5th in the points table, with 1 win and 4 losses from their five matches. In the batting department, the team will be relying heavily on the experienced duo of Rilee Rossouw and captain Mohammad Rizwan to do most of the scoring.
The team has lost the services of James Vince, Chris Lynn, Shahid Afridi and Carlos Brathwaite. Shimron Hetmyer and Rahmanullah Gurbaz come in as replacements. In the bowling department. Shahnawaz Dhani, Sohail Tanvir and Sohail Khan will be the pacers, whereas the spin department will consist of the leg-spin duo of Imran Tahir and Usman Qadir.
On the other hand, Karachi Kings have started the competition dominantly and are placed at the second spot in the points table, with 3 wins and 2 losses from their five matches. They will miss Mohammad Nabi, Daniel Christian, Colin Ingram and Joe Clarke for the remainder of the season.
In the batting department, the team will be depending on the likes of Martin Guptill, Babar Azam and Sharjeel Khan to make the big runs. In the bowling department, the focus will be on Mohammad Amir to lead the pace attack, along with Arshad Iqbal and Waqas Maqsood. Imad Wasim and Thisara Perera will be the all-rounders in the playing XI.
In the previous meeting between the two teams, Karachi Kings registered a comfortable 7-wicket win over Multan Sultans, courtesy of Babar Azam. Nonetheless, expect a cracking game to start the doubleheader Thursday in Abu Dhabi.
Match Details
- Match: Multan Sultans vs. Karachi Kings, Match 16
- Venue: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
- Date & Time: Jun. 10, 2021, at 6:30 PM IST/5 PM Local
Probable Playing XI
Multan Sultans
Mohammad Rizwan (C & WK), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Shimron Hetmyer, Rilee Rossouw, Sohaib Maqsood, Khushdil Shah, Sohail Tanvir, Usman Qadir, Sohail Khan, Imran Tahir, Shahnawaz Dhani
Karachi Kings
Sharjeel Khan, Martin Guptill, Babar Azam (C), Chadwick Walton (WK), Najibullah Zadran, Thisara Perera, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Waqas Maqsood, Abbas Afridi, Arshad Iqbal
Pitch & Weather Report
The weather is expected to be hot in Abu Dhabi during the match. The temperature will be around 38 degrees during the game.
The pitch at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium is expected to assist pacers with the new ball. The surface is a little slow and the batters will have to be careful with their shot selection. Moreover, the large boundaries mean timing will be of the utmost importance here. Spinners will get more help in the first innings. The average score in the last five games played here has been 167 runs.
The chasing teams have lost 3 of the last 5 T20 matches played at this venue. So expect the captain winning the toss to opt to bat first. A score of around 170 runs should be a competitive one here.
Top Fantasy Picks
Multan Sultans
- Mohammad Rizwan has been in brilliant form, scoring big runs with the bat in recent months. He is also the leading run scorer in this tournament, with 297 runs at an average of 59.40 and a strike rate of 140.09, including 3 half centuries.
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz is an explosive batsman and has scored more than 1600 T20 runs at a strike rate of 148.74, including 11 half centuries. He scored a brilliant 127 against Ireland and an 87 against Zimbabwe in the recent series.
- Shahnawaz Dhani is the leading wicket taker for Multan in this season, picking up 9 wickets in four matches at an average of 17.22 and an economy rate of 10.33. He is a wicket-taking bowler and has taken at least 2 wickets in every match he played this season.
Karachi Kings
- Babar Azam is the second-highest run scorer in the league this season, with 258 runs in five matches at an average of 86 and a strike rate of 138.7. He scored his maiden T20 century against South Africa a few months back and will be looking for a big score here.
- Martin Guptill is a veteran of T20 cricket, having played 372 games and made more than 10,000 runs in this format. After struggling for a while, he got back into scoring form in the recent home series against Australia and Bangladesh.
- Arshad Iqbal is the highest wicket taker for Karachi Kings in this year’s tournament, with 6 wickets in five matches at an average of 17.22 and an economy rate of 7.93. His best figures of 3 for 16 came against Quetta in Karachi's first match of the season.
Howzat Dream Team
- Wicketkeepers: M Rizwan, R Gurbaz
- Batsmen: B Azam, M Guptill, S Hetmyer
- All-rounders: S Tanvir, T Perera
- Bowlers: S Dhani, U Qadir, A Iqbal, M Amir
- Captain: M Rizwan/B Azam
- Vice Captain: S Dhani/A Iqbal
NOTE: The Howzat dream team above is just a suggestion. You can select your own fantasy 11, and play fantasy cricket matches. Also, don’t forget to make any necessary changes to your team once the actual playing 11 is announced by each team (30 minutes before the start of the match) as some players you have selected might not be part of the team suggested.
Get fantasy cricket tips on your favorite fantasy sports app and select your own team, Howzat!
