Lahore Qalandars vs Multan Sultans, Pakistan Super League 2020, Today Match Prediction 15 Mar 2020

lhq vs mls Match Prediction & Analysis

Lahore Qalandars will be looking to seal their place in the playoffs when they face League Leaders Multan Sultans in the 29th match of 2020 Pakistan Super League at National Stadium in Karachi on Sunday.

Having suffered a comprehensive defeat at the hands of Karachi Kings, Lahore Qalandars will be looking to produce their best cricket in their final round-robin game. If they win on Sunday, for the first time, Qalandars will qualify for the playoffs.

On the other hand, Multan Sultans registered a narrow three-win over Peshawar Zalmi, courtesy excellent death bowling performances from Sohail Tanvir and Ali Shafiq. The franchise will be looking to finish at the top spot in the round-robin stages of the competition.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Lahore Qalandars Preview

Qalandars will need to put their best cricket on display when they face Multan Sultan in their final round-robin game.

The biggest disappointment has been the form of Chris Lynn, who has failed to make an impact in this year’s competition.  Despite scoring his first half-century of the season against Peshawar Zalmi, Lynn failed to repeat his batting heroics and perished for a low score against Karachi Kings. Lahore Qalandars' Skipper Sohail Akhtar once again led from the front with the bat and delivered an excellent innings for the side against Karachi Kings.

Sohail Akthar anchored the whole innings for Lahore despite losing wickets at the other end. He played well and finished the innings with the top-score of 68 runs off 49 balls with the help of eight boundaries and two sixes. The return to form for Mohammad Hafeez will give Lahore Qalandars much needed confidence as they have had to rely on likes of Ben Dunk, Samit Patel and Sohail Akhtar to deliver the bulk of the scoring.

The bowling unit has been led brilliantly by left-arm quick Shaheen Shah Afridi, who is currently franchise’s leading wicket-taker with 11 scalps to his name. Medium-pacer Dilbar Hussain and spinner Samit Patel have proved to be decent bowling options for the side and have put in splendid performances in the last couple of matches.

Lahore Qalandars Predicted Playing XI:

Sohail Akhtar (captain ), Haris Rauf, Dilbar Hussain, Muhammad Faizan, Mohammad Hafeez, Samit Patel, Chris Lynn, Ben Dunk (wk), David Wiese, Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Afridi

Lahore Qalandars Actual Playing XI:

Mohammad Hafeez, Sohail Akhtar, D Wiese, F Zaman, Dilbar Hussain, Chris Lynn, Haris Rauf, SR Patel, Shaheen Afridi, Raja Farzan, Ben Dunk

Multan Sultans Preview

Shan Masood-led unit managed to eke out a close win over Peshawar Zalmi, courtesy splendid performances from Zeeshan Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, and Sohail Tanvir. With this result, Sultans have managed to extend their lead at the top points. The side has won six games out of nine played this season. Despite having no Rilee Rossouw and James Vince in their playing XI, Sultans got off to a decent start against Peshawar Zalmi.

Playing his first-game, U-19 World Cup sensation Rohail Nazir, promoted to open the innings for Multan, scored 14 runs with the help of two boundaries. Wicket-keeper Zeeshan Ashraf and captain Shan Masood came together and put on a 60-run partnership to keep the scoreboard ticking for Multan Sultans.

Zeeshan Ashraf notched up his 2nd PSL half-century in this year’s competition. He scored 52 runs off 39 balls with the help of seven fours and one six. Moeen Ali, Ravi Bopara perished in quick succession, while Masood also couldn’t capitalize on his good start to see Multan placed in a precarious position at 105 for 5 after 14.4 overs.

Khushdil Shah once again produced a crucial inning for Multan Sultans and scored 30 runs off 20 balls with the help of two sixes. He was well supported by Shahid Afridi, who chipped in with 19 runs off 13 balls with the help of one four and one six.

Sohail Tanvir and Mohammad Irfan put in splendid new-ball performances to reduce Peshawar to 8 for 2 after 3 overs. In his second spell for Multan, Tanvir dismissed Imam-ul-Haq and Hammad Azam to see Peshawar lose momentum in their chase. With 3 for 26 in four overs, Tanvir was the best bowler for Multan on display. Youngster Ali Shafiq also bowled well and claimed two wickets at the end to see Multan clinch a thriller.

Multan Sultans Predicted Playing XI:

Zeeshan Ashraf (wk), Shan Masood (c), Khushdil Shah, Moeen Ali, Rohail Nazir, Shahid Afridi, Ravi Bopara, Ali Shafiq, Imran Tahir, Mohammad Irfan, Sohail Tanvir

Multan Sultans Actual Playing XI:

Bilawal Bhatti, Asad Shafiq, U Qadir, Ali Shafiq, RS Bopara, Shan Masood, Zeeshan Ashraf, Moeen Ali, Khushdil Shah, Junaid Khan, Rohail Nazir

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

With temperature close to 30 degrees, expect the pitch tend to be on the slower side for this game as well. Since it is day-game at Karachi, conditions will not change much during the course of the game.

Venue Details

The 29th match of 2020 PSL between Lahore Qalandars and Multan Sultan is going to be played at National Cricket Stadium in Karachi. In the previous meeting between the two teams, Multan Sultans registered a five-wicket win over Lahore Qalandars at Gaddafi Stadium.

Toss: To Bat

Winning the toss and batting first on this wicket should be the way to go in this game. In a day fixture, the pitch might considerably slow down as spinners will enjoy bowling in these conditions.