Week 6: Half-way Analysis

Week 6 begun in remarkable fashion with opposite results to the previous encounters. All three week-1 winners were left stunned by a thrilling display of willpower and skill.

After a disappointing start to the tournament, the Knights Watchmen have suddenly surged in to full form. They defeated the in-form Hit n Run team after a heroic innings by Yograj Kote, which included 6 sixes, and 4 wickets by Moneeb Khatana. The Knights proved that they can win without relying on Arsalan or Yousaf, and proved they have the resources to peak at any time. It seems the underdog tag is helping them stay focused.

After 3 dominating wins, Hit n Run fell victim to their inner Umar-Akmal. The Knights outplayed them in every department last week, but the difference in attitude between the teams was significant. Now is not the time to be complacent and start resting on laurels. Hit n Run has the talent, but hard work beats talent when talent stops working hard. The defending champions will need to remind themselves how they won last year: by playing as a team, not giving in and being consistent. The return of Waqar will bolster their confidence as a team, and give them some much-needed control after last weeks assault.

Some will argue that the Molvi Sixers are less than the sum of its parts. After 2 consecutive losses for the first time in their history, it is bewildering to see how a team with so much experience, skill and all-round ability can be outplayed. With emotions out of control on the field, players deflating quickly under pressure, and a captain whose presence is inconspicuous, it is clearer to understand why they lost. Adnan will be under pressure to perform this week and he will hope one of his big names will help him brush the Molvi's issues under the carpet.

The Six Shotterz have been hitting some form in the past 2 weeks with wins over Darnall and Batsman. The Shotterz' pace duo of Shadab and Shoaib are shining through - bowling one of the most economical combined spells in the tournament - giving just 9 runs in 6 overs. The benefit of having raw pace, swing and seam is a huge advantage to the Six Shotterz as they move closer to the knockout games. With what they believe to be a brittle and modest batting line-up, they are contempt with scoring below-par scores of around 60 runs. Such a bowling attack has proven to make life tough for most batting lineups.

The Darnall Dynamites have had a disappointing four weeks. After two consecutive wins at the start of the tournament (led by Arsalan's batting and some disciplined bowling), this team looked good to compete against anyone. However, collapses of 15/6 and 28/6 against the best bowling attacks of the tournament suggest their batting is lacking in depth. Regardless, Darnall has every chance of making the playoffs if they can manage to sort out their batting deficiencies on the upcoming games. Once again much will rest on the performances of Arsalan and Monir at the top of the order.

With over 14 squad members for a team of 6, the Batsman and Robin have by far been the most unsettled team of the tournament. They have only had the same playing VI in two games and managed to win both of those games convincingly - including a thrilling win over the Molvi Sixers last week. Jimmy will hope his winning combination can stick around for the next four weeks if his team has any chances of making the playoffs. Batsman and Robin have shown they're courageous and athletic in the field; with more experience their best may yet be to come.

With three teams each on 4 points and on 8 points respectively, we can expect Friday’s results to shake up the top of the table.