Multan Sultans fast bowler Ihsanullah dedicated his Player of the tournament award to his father. The pacer ended on the wrong side of the result as Lahore Qalandars won the thrilling final by one run at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on Saturday. In fact, the youngster didn’t have the best of nights in the summit clash as he conceded 37 runs in the three overs he bowled and also bowled five no-balls.
However, Ihsanullah impressed with the ball for Multan Sultans as he finished as the second-highest wicket-taker in the tournament. He took 22 wickets in 12 matches in the competition at an average of 15.77. His best bowling performance came against Quetta Gladiators when he returned with figures of 5-12 in his quota of four overs, which was also best in the eighth season of the tournament.
Furthermore, the 20-year-old from Matta, Swat conceded his runs at an economy rate of 7.60. The youngster also gave credit to MS skipper Mohammad Rizwan for giving him support.
Ihsanullah said in the post-match presentation, “I am thankful to God for giving me this success. I have gained a lot of experience from playing in the PSL. Foreign players and senior players have taught me a lot. Rizwan has guided me a lot. I’d like to dedicate this to my father who supported me a lot.”
On the other hand, Zaman Khan was backed by Shaheen Shah Afridi when LHQ had to defend 13 runs in the final over.
Khan was able to keep his calm in the pressure situation. He said, “I was feeling the pressure, but my captain backed me. Shaheen told me not to worry even if we lost the game. I enjoyed bowling the final over and we won the match. Shaheen asked to me to bowl yorkers, but I knew that the batters will be expecting them and I slipped in a few slower balls. The management gave us a lot of confidence. They gave us a free hand and asked us to give our 100% on the field.”
It was a thrilling contest as the match went down to the wire. There were some brilliant performances from LHQ and MS as both of them have been the most consistent teams in the last couple of seasons.
