File image of Colin Munro.© X (formerly Twitter)
Former New Zealand batter and Islamabad United batter Colin Munro shattered Rilee Rossouw’s record for most fifty-plus scores in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) with a strong display for Islamabad United against Lahore Qalandars. Munro’s heroics washed away Lahore’s Abdullah Shafique’s individual effort of a quick-fire 66 from 38 deliveries. With his 13th fifty-plus score in his 48th appearance in Pakistan’s premier T20 tournament, Munro dethroned Rossouw from the top and scripted the record to his name. Overall. Munro boasts 1,476 runs in 48 appearances in the PSL.
Before his exploits in Rawalpindi, Munro was tied with Rossouw for the record, but his unbeaten 59(42) took him past the South African’s tally of 12. Munro’s former Kiwis compatriot Luke Ronchi slipped to the third spot with 10 fifty-plus scores in 31 matches.
England’s explosive opener Jason Roy is tied with Ronchi for the record with 10 fifty-plus scores in 38 appearances. Among all players, Peshawar Zalmi captain and Pakistan’s premier batter Babar Azam leads the chart with the most fifty-plus in PSL history, with a tally of 35 under his belt.
Munro’s record-breaking effort in the PSL Season 10 opener lifted Islamabad United to glory in their quest to defend the title. Islamabad got off to a robust start and brushed aside Lahore with a thumping eight-wicket victory.
Apart from Munro’s sizzling unbeaten 59, Jason Holder played a starring role with the ball. He returned with figures of 4/26 to restrict Lahore to a paltry 139. Apart from Shafique’s brilliance and a handy 23-run knock from Sikandar Raza, the rest of the batting unit crumbled into dust.
Shafique found his rhythm for Islamabad United after a dry spell with the bat in the international circuit for Pakistan. His effortless display at number three allowed his side to limp to 139. In reply, Munro’s fiery knock and Salman Ali Agha’s 41* lifted Islamabad to a comfortable 8-wicket triumph in the lung-opener clash.
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