From Our Sports Correspondents
LAHORE/KARACHI: Lahore Qalandars defeated Peshawar Zalmi by 40 runs in the 15th fixture of the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore yesterday, after Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi gave Qalandars the best start they could get.
Opting to bat first, Qalandars posted a mammoth 242-run target before restricting Zalmi to 201 runs in 20 overs, thanks to an exceptional batting display from Fakhar and Abdullah Shafique and a five-wicket haul from Shaheen.
In reply to the big total, Zalmi had a good partnership from Saim Ayub and Tom Kohler-Cadmore after losing both openers.
Shaheen gave Qalandars the best start they could get against Zalmi. The skipper bowled out Mohammad Haris with a sensational yorker on the second ball of his first over. The left-arm pacer struck again in his second over as he cleaned up Zalmi’s skipper Babar Azam with a magnificent in-swinging delivery.
Babar had to depart after scoring only seven runs.
After Babar’s departure, Saim Ayub and Tom Kohler-Cadmore put on a magnificent 91-run partnership off just 44 balls.
However, Cadmore was dismissed by Haris Rauf after he smashed a blistering 55 runs off just 23 balls.
The next batter to fall was Saim, who tried to take on Rashid Khan but was caught by Abdullah Shafique. The left-handed batter scored crucial 51 runs in 34 balls.
Meanwhile, Karachi Kings won the 14th match of the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) against Multan Sultans by 66 runs as the Sultans were unable to chase the 168-run target set for them, at the National Bank Cricket Arena in Karachi on Sunday.
Put to bat first, Kings posted a competitive target of 168 runs before bowling out Sultans for 101 runs in 16.3 overs, thanks to a half-century from Tayyab Tahir and an exceptional display of spin bowling from Tabraiz Shamsi, Shoaib Ma-lik, and Imad Wasim.
In reply to the target, Sultans’ batters couldn’t find the momentum as Kings’ spin bowling shone and didn’t let their opponents settle.
Opener Shan Masood departed after scoring 25 runs in 16 balls with the help of four boundaries. The batter fell to Akif Javed after an inside edge.
Meanwhile, Rilee Rossouw was cleaned up by a beauty from spinner Shoaib Malik. The left-hander could only score seven runs in six balls.
