Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators Match Preview – Betting Tips, Latest Odds, Team News and Predictions – 27/02/2020
Quetta Gladiators got the better of Islamabad United when the teams opened the Pakistan Super League last week. This one promises to be another close contest as the PSL return fixtures begin in earnest.
Defending champions Quetta won that last meeting by three wickets in the penultimate over but have had mixed fortunes since. A loss to Peshawar Zalmi followed before a win against Karachi Kings.
Islamabad, however, came back from that opening day defeat to register successive wins. They put Multan Sultans to the sword and followed it with victory in Lahore. They will be keen to prove Quetta caught them cold in the last meeting when they clash in Rawalpindi.
Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators – Match Preview
Where: Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi
When: Thursday 27th February
Pitch conditions: Rawalpindi is usually a bowler-friendly surface and can help swing bowling. The ground hasn’t hosted T20Is so this clash will give fans more of an idea about how it will act with one eye on later in the tournament.
Weather conditions: It is set to be a cloudy evening in Rawalpindi with temperatures around 20c. There is also a chance the clash may be reduced at some stage due to the occasional rain shower.
Start Time: 19:30 (IST), 14:00 (GMT)
Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators – Latest Odds
Islamabad are considered the favourites for the win at 1.80 (4/5) with 10Cric. Quetta can be backed at 2.00 (1/1) to take the spoils in Rawalpindi.
Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators – Team News
Two-time PSL winners Islamabad are unlikely to make too many changes on the back of successive PSL victories. Their biggest shifts could come in their batting order. Skipper Shadab Khan pushed himself up to four from seven last time out and duly landed a half-century against Lahore.
They will be looking for more consistency from their openers Colin Munro and Luke Ronchi. Both men fired against Multan but struggled either side of that.
Quetta, meanwhile, will be reasonably pleased with their start and again likely to move away from too many changes to their line-up.
Getting Shane Watson firing alongside Jason Roy will be key to their progress this season, especially with Azam Khan looking in decent nick in the middle-order.
Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators – Squads
| Islamabad United |
Quetta Gladiators |
| Shadab Khan (captain) |
Sarfaraz Ahmed (captain) |
| Rizwan Hussain |
Ahsan Ali |
| Dawid Malan |
Mohammad Nawaz |
| Saif Badar |
Keemo Paul |
| Colin Munro |
Sohail Khan |
| Faheem Ashraf |
Aarish Ali |
| Phil Salt |
Ben Cutting |
| Muhammad Musa |
Fawad Ahmed |
| Zafar Gohar |
Shane Watson |
| Ahmed Abdullah |
Ahmed Shehzad |
| Colin Ingram |
Mohammad Hasnain |
| Asif Ali |
Naseem Shah |
| Amad Butt |
Abdul Nasir |
| Hussain Talat |
Khurram Manzoor |
| Luke Ronchi |
Azam Khan |
| Dale Steyn |
Jason Roy |
| Rumman Raees |
Tymal Mills |
| Akif Javed |
Anwar Ali |
Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators – Betting Tips and Prediction
Even though Islamabad have picked up since their opening day defeat, it would be no surprise to see Quetta claim successive wins over them.
Both teams have been a little inconsistent in the opening batting department but it’s the Gladiators’ middle-order than could prove the difference in this one. Their price of even money looks the better bet given the fact they’ve already inflicted one defeat on United.
Captain Sarfaraz vital for Quetta
Ahmed Sarfaraz looks a good bet to be his team’s top scorer, especially if one of the openers fails to fire again. He has hit 21, 41 and 37 in his last three innings and can go to get a big score if he has the time.
Jason Roy also has to be considered at 3.25 (9/4) and is rightly the favourite after his impressive 73 in defeat to Peshawar. However, the inconsistency of the Quetta openers means Sarfaraz could be over-priced at 6.00 (5/1) with 10Cric and should also come into the reckoning.
Malan the man for United
Dawid Malan looks capable of doing some damage playing at three in this Islamabad side and it is worth siding with him to be his team’s best batsman.
Colin Munro and Luke Ronchi are capable of important contributions, as shown against Multan, but it is Malan who might need to fire if United are to make it three wins on the spin.
He can be backed at 4.00 (3/1) with 10Cric to top the run-scorer charts for the hosts. His quick-fire 64 against Quetta earlier this season is also encouraging.
Best Bet: Dawid Malan to top score for Islamabad at 4.00 (3/1) with 10Cric
February 27, 2020 
14:00 
