PSL 2021, match preview: Islamabad United to face Multan Sultans today

• Islamabad United have brought Johan Botha on board, who has replaced Misbah ul Haq as head coach
• United have also shuffled their roster hoping for a change of fortune
• Multan, on the other hand, is boosted by the signing of in-form batsman Mohammad Rizwan who was picked by Sultans at the players' draft

Two-time former champion Islamabad United will take on the Multan Sultans on Sunday evening in another clash that is expected to bring exciting action to the table. 

The winners of the 2016 and 2018 PSL editions had finished at the bottom in the previous edition of PSL but now they have brought Johan Botha on board as the head coach, who has replaced Misbah ul Haq.

They have also shuffled their roster hoping for a change of fortune.

Although United are without some of their top performers from the past leagues such as Luke Ronchi, Colin Munro, Colin Ingram, and Dawid Malan, however, this time around the signings of Alex Hales, Lewis Gregory, Phil Salt, and Paul Stirling have given them some hopes of a better result.

Alex Hales will surely be the player to watch for in United after how he dominated the Big Bash League. Paul Stirling of Ireland has also been in good form recently.

United will bank on their local talent as well which includes Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Hussain Talat, and Hasan Ali, all of whom who have been playing a lot of domestic cricket in the recent months. 

Multan, on the other hand, is boosted by the signing of in-form batsman Mohammad Rizwan who was picked by Sultans at the players' draft. 

Read more: PSL 2021 team profile: Multan Sultans look to make a fresh start with Rizwan as captain

The wicket-keeper batsman was earlier dropped by Karachi Kings where he couldn’t get enough opportunity to showcase his talent.

Rizwan’s recent form has also motivated the Sultans management to promote him as captain in place of Shan Masood, just five days before the start of the tournament.

Chris Lynn, who dominated while playing for Lahore Qalandars, is also in the Sultans’ dugout this season of the PSL, and the coaching staff of Multan – that finished on top at the end of the league stages last year – will be hoping from him to carry on his last year’s performance.

Players to watch out for:

Islamabad United: Alex Hales

Multan Sultans: James Vince

Here are the squads for both teams

Islamabad United: Alex Hales, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Hussain Talat, Musa Khan, Shadab Khan, Zafar Gohar, Hassan Ali, Lewis Gregory, Phil Salt, Rohail Nazir, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Ahmed Saifi Abdullah, Paul Stirling, Ali Khan, Fawad Ahmed, Zeeshan Zameer

Multan Sultans: Shahid Afridi, Imran Tahir, James Vince, Khushdil Shah, Rilee Rossouw, Shan Masood, Sohail Tanvir, Usman Qadir, Chris Lynn, Sohail Khan, Mohammad Rizwan, Carlos Brathwaite, Sohaib Maqsood, Sohaib Ullah, Adam Lyth, Shahnawaz Dhani, Muhammad Umar, Imran Khan Sr