Bopara steers Karachi Kings to 178 against Lahore Qalandar

SHARJAH: Ravi Bopara smashed an unbeaten 71 off 43 balls to take Karachi Kings to 178 for five in the allotted 20 overs against Lahore Qalandars in the 12th T20 match of the Pakistan Super League here at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.Darren Bravo, who is leading Lahore Qalandars in absence of captain Azhar Ali, won the toss and put Karachi Kings into bat.Azhar Ali is resting for today’s match while Chris Gayle is back in the team.Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim has joined Karachi Kings but fast bowler Mohammad Amir is not playing today due to fitness problems.However, Karachi set a tough target of 179 for Lahore. They were indebted to Bopara who hit four sixes and three fours.Among others, openers Nauman Anwar made 35 and captain Shoaib Malik scored 27 and both gave the team a fine start of 54 runs in 6.4 overs.For Lahore Qalandars, left-arm spinners Zafar Gohar and Zohaib Khan claimed two wickets each while right-arm pacer kevon Kooper took one wicket. ‘