Arthur says Karachi will come back stronger

dubai — Karachi Kings coach Mickey Arthur was left to pick up the pieces after a mediocre showing in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and said that the batting let them down.

But the 47-year-old South African added that they will learn from this and bounce back when the next edition comes around.

The Karachi Kings had just about managed to qualify for the play-offs but faltered yet again against Islamabad United. Ravi Bopara, prior to being appointed as captain after Shoaib Malik stood down, had said that they didn’t deserve to qualify. And in the play-off, the Karachi Kings failed to turn up and went down by nine wickets.

“It was a terrible batting performance again and that sums up our tournament,” Arthur admitted. “We haven’t batted well through the tournament and it is very frustrating and disappointing,” added the former South Africa and Australia coach.

The Karachi Kings tinkered with their opening slots right through the tournament but nothing clicked. And Arthur said it was frustrating that they couldn’t solve the puzzle. “We were looking for the right combination throughout the competition. We looked for somebody to try and kick-start our innings. We haven’t had finishes either. It has been really tough trying to get the right combination. We tried guys upfront to give it a go and we even tried Shoaib Malik upfront to give us some stability. It was frustrating that we couldn’t get the batting order right,” he said. But Arthur was ready to put this behind and look ahead. He said that the team will be better and stronger next year.

Meanwhile, Man of the Match Mohammad Sami said that he just stuck to the basics and added that he had benefited from Wasim Akram’s advice.

“I want to get better and better with my performances. I’m not trying anything extra, just sticking to the basics and getting good help from the team management, especially Wasim Akram,” said Sami. Teammate Brad Haddin said that Sami was rewarded for all the hard work that he put in.