Sport Desk
Multan: Multan Sultans Friday emerged victorious in the fifth match of the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), defeating Peshawar Zalmi by 56 runs.
Usama Mir was on song as Multan Sultans managed to make a comeback in middle overs.
Saim Ayub was leading the charge when Usama came in and wreaked massive destruction as he went on to hit perfect lengths and picked up quick wickets in the middle overs to put Zalmi on the back foot. Usama bagged Tom Kohler-Cadmore in the 11th over followed by back-to-back wickets in the 15th over. Cadmore (3) misjudged the length and gave a simple catch.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Saim fell to Usama in the 15th over which gave Sultans a way into the match.
Set to chase mammoth 211 runs, Saim and Mohammad Haris rescued Zalmi followed by skipper Babar Azam’s departure after scoring just nine runs.
The two batters scored 47 runs together. Saim, who started his innings with a solid cover drive, scored his maiden half-century to stabilise Zalmi’s innings after Haris’ run-out. Haris got run out after scoring 40 off 23 balls including a boundary and four maximums. Saim got bowled out for 53 runs off 37 balls laced with three boundaries and as many maximums.
Ihsanullah, who bagged five wickets in the previous match, picked up three wickets after Saim hit him for some boundaries.
Abbas Afridi also took two wickets while Carlos Brathwaite managed a scalp. Previously, Sultans set Zalmi a target of 211 runs after the fifties by skipper Mohammad Rizwan and middle-order batter Rilee Rossouw.
Sultans scored 210-3 in their allotted 20 overs. Rossouw played an explosive knock of 75 runs in 36 balls, with the help of 12 fours and two massive sixes. Meanwhile, Rizwan, who opened the innings, scored 66 runs in 42 balls. The right-hander’s knock included nine fours and a six. Pacer Salman Irshad was the pick of the bowlers for Zalmi, who claimed figures of 2-38 in four overs.
Earlier, Zalmi had won the toss and decided to bowl first in the fifth match of PSL 8.
After this win, the Sultans retain their dominance on the points table with four points in three matches.
Multan lost their first match against Lahore Qalandars but bounced back to defeat Quetta Gladiators in their second game. Meanwhile, Zalmi suffered a defeat after a winning start to the tournament with a win over Karachi Kings.
Lineups
Multan Sultans: Shan Masood, Mohammad Rizwan(w/c), Rilee Rossouw, David Miller, Kieron Pollard, Khushdil Shah, Carlos Brathwaite, Usama Mir, Abbas Afridi, Sameen Gul, Ihsanullah Peshawar Zalmi: Mohammad Haris(w), Babar Azam(c), Saim Ayub, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rovman Powell, James Neesham, Wahab Riaz, Khurram Shahzad, Salman Irshad, Sufiyan Muqeem.
