Warner talked about how he backed his strength, pointing out how Shaheen was wrong with his assessment.
David Warner took a dig at Shaheen Afridi for his faulty pitch reading after Karachi Kings’ victory over Lahore Qalandars last night. Warner-led Karachi defeated the Qalandars by four wickets with three balls to spare.
Following the game, the broadcaster asked whether he would revisit his decision to play with more pacers. That’s when Warner talked about how he backed his strength, pointing out how Shaheen was wrong with his assessment.
“No, look, I was stuck with it. I think, Shaheen said it was gonna turn; not one ball has turned on the three games here. So, I was baffled by those comments. You just got to back yourself, and that’s the way our team is positioned at the moment.”
While Karachi Kings went for only a solitary spinner, Mohammed Nabi, Lahore Qalandars fielded as many as three spinners – Asif Afridi, Sikandar Raza, and Rishad Hossain. The move didn’t work for the Qalandars, as their three tweakers conceded 10.71 runs per over in seven sets while taking only two wickets, proving Warner’s decision to field more pacers correct.
Karachi Kings required 48 runs to win in their final three overs, but a carnage of the highest order followed. Irfan Khan unleashed his true range, but Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf also bowled poorly to let him score freely.
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Shaheen conceded 21 runs in the 13th over, as Irfan hit as many as three maximums to bring the required rate down. Then, Haris Rauf gave 20 runs in the next over, with Irfan Khan and Mohammad Nabi bringing the equation in Karachi’s favour.
Finally, in the final over, Irfan Khan finished the chase with a six with three balls to spare to hand an unwanted defeat to Lahore Qalandars. This was their fourth defeat of the season, and Karachi climbed to third on the points table with this win.
Despite having two of the best bowlers in the country, Lahore Qalandars couldn’t defend a big total, and this defeat was on their bowlers. However, they can still qualify for the next round and must win their final league-stage game against Peshawar Zalmi.
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