Karachi, 26 April 2026: Hyderabad Kingsmen defeated Rawalpindi by 108 runs and pushed Lahore Qalandars out of fourth place on the points table on the basis of a superior net run rate. The Kingsmen successfully defended their massive total of 244-6 at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi on Sunday afternoon.
Hyderabad Kingsmen Beat Rawalpindi
Brilliant half centuries from Glenn Maxwell, Usman Khan and Kusal Perera powered the Kingsmen past the 200-run mark as they needed to win by at least 86 runs to overtake the Qalandars. In response Hunain Shah proved to be the difference-maker, claiming career-best T20 figures of 4-22 at a time when Rawalpindi were cruising at 56-1 in 5.2 overs.
Chasing 245 to win their second match of the tournament, Rawalpindi could have ended the Kingsmen’s campaign if they had scored 159 or more. However, they collapsed dramatically, losing seven wickets for just 42 runs and were bowled out for 136 in 17.1 overs.
Usman Khawaja, who remained unbeaten on 66 off 43 balls with nine fours, struggled to find a stable partner after coming in to bat following Shahzaib Khan’s early dismissal by Akif Javed in the second over. Khawaja and Rizwan added a quick 43 runs in 22 balls to raise hopes, but it wasn’t enough.
Player of the Match Hunain made an immediate impact in his first over by removing Mohammad Rizwan (26 off 15 balls, four fours) and then dismissing Kamran Ghulam for a duck within three balls.
At that stage, Sam Billings (23 off 12 balls, one four and two sixes) and Khawaja added a fluent 38-run stand, briefly threatening the Kingsmen’s hopes. However, after hitting a six, Billings mistimed a shot off Akif, and Rawalpindi were 94-4 after 10 overs.
Akif then removed the dangerous Dean Forster in the 12th over, after which wickets fell regularly, with Rawalpindi losing five wickets for just 34 runs. Akif finished with three wickets for 38 runs, while Mohammad Ali and Glenn Maxwell picked up one wicket each.
Earlier, the Kingsmen came out aggressively after being asked to bat first, knowing they needed a big total. After the early dismissal of captain Marnus Labuschagne (5 off 5 balls), Maaz Sadaqat (28 off 11 balls, five fours and a six) and Usman Khan added 54 runs inside the first five overs.
Saim Ayub (12 off 5 balls, one four and a six) struck in the final over of the powerplay as the Kingsmen reached 78-2 in six overs. Usman Khan smashed 54 off 26 balls, hitting four fours and four sixes.
Saad Masood struck twice at the start of the ninth over to remove Usman and Mohammad Irfan Khan, leaving the Kingsmen at 119-5. With the innings at a crossroads, top-scorer Glenn Maxwell (70 off 37 balls, eight fours and three sixes) and Kusal Perera (50 not out off 30 balls, five fours and a six) put together a match-changing 108-run partnership in 59 balls.
Before falling on the first ball of the final over, Maxwell launched a fierce assault on the Rawalpindi bowling attack. He hit a six off Sears in the 11th over, two fours in the 18th, three fours off Aamir in the 17th, and Imad Butt conceded two consecutive fours in the 19th. This was Maxwell’s 59th T20 half-century.
Perera completed his third HBL PSL fifty and played a vital supporting role. Hasan Khan finished the innings strongly by smashing a four and two sixes off Forster in the last three balls, scoring 16 runs off just four deliveries.
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