Peshawar Zalmi joined Multan Sultans in the playoff stage of the Pakistan Super League on Friday, after thrashing Quetta Gladiators by 76 runs.
“We are happy with the score we got. It was a complete performance and even the bowlers were outstanding. We executed the plans and fielding was superb too,” Zalmi skipper Babar Azam said at the presentation ceremony.
Zalmi posted 196 on the board, which was comfortably defended by their bowling, as Gladiators were bundled up for just 120 in 17.5 overs. The Babar Azam-led side also became the only team to have qualified for the playoffs in all nine editions of PSL.
Quetta Gladiators won the toss and decided to field against Peshawar Zalmi in the PSL nine in Rawalpindi on Friday.
Zalmi got off to a flying start after being put to bat first by Gladiators. After seeing off Mohammad Amir in the first over, which yielded just a run, Babar Azam and Saim Ayub went berserk, as they amassed 46 off 22 for the first-wicket partnership.
In the fourth over, Saim took on Sohail Khan by smashing two consecutive sixes and then a four. The right-arm fast bowler avenged the onslaught by removing Saim on the fourth delivery, who edged one to Abrar Ahmed at short third.
Mohammad Haris joined Babar on the crease for a second-wicket partnership that yielded 47 off 25. In the fifth over, Babar took on Mohammad Hasnain, who was hit for three boundaries. At the end of the powerplay, Zalmi stood tall at 70-1.
At the end of eighth over, Haris was run out as Rilee Rossouw perfected the throw at the non-striker’s end. Haseebullah fell to Abrar shortly after, walking back for a run-a-ball six.
Tom Kohler-Cadmore, the next batter in, announced himself with two consecutive fours against Hasnain. In the 12th over, Abrar conceded 19 runs on the back of three fours and a six while Babar brought up his fourth PSL 9 half-century courtesy of a boundary on the last ball.
In the next over, Babar was trapped leg-before by Akeal Hosein to cut short the 36-run fourth-wicket stand. Then, Saud Shakeel caught Cadmore at long-on to bring Zalmi to 147-5 in 13.4 overs.
Hosein, bowling the 16th over, bagged the first hattrick of PSL 9 as he removed Aamer Jamal, Mehran Mumtaz and Luke Wood to derail Zalmi’s innings. This was the sixth overall hat-trick in HBL PSL history and only the second by a foreign player.
The unbeaten ninth-wicket partnership between Rovman Powell and Naveen-ul-Haq, yielding 39 runs did well to help Zalmi recover after the earlier setback. Powell, facing Amir in the last over, hit three fours taking Zalmi to 196-8 in 20 overs.
Hosein was the pick of the bowlers for Quetta, accounting for four wickets for just 23 runs. Sohail, Hasnain and Abrar had a wicket each.
Chasing 197, Saud Shakeel and Jason Roy also put up a 46-run opening stand to match that of Zalmi’s, earlier in the game.
Khurram Shahzad, playing his first game of PSL 9, was greeted with two boundaries in his first over. In the following over, Saud hit Naveen for a four and two sixes on consecutive balls to take Quetta to 45 in four overs.
Mehran, introduced to the attack inside the powerplay, provided the first breakthrough for Peshawar to trigger the collapse for Quetta, as Khurram pouched Saud at short third. In the next over, Roy departed as well with Quetta ending the powerplay at 56-2.
Saim, bowling the eighth over, further pushed Quetta into a corner as he delivered a double-wicket over that yielded just one run with Rossouw and Khawaja Nafay falling without helping the scoreboard much.
Laurie Evans also failed to make an impact with the bat and was caught at long-on, in the 11th over, to further trouble Quetta.
Omair bin Yousuf and Hosein added 21 runs for the sixth-wicket stand before both of them fell in consecutive overs to Naveen and Wood respectively.
Amir made 13 off eight, with the help of three boundaries, before he was caught at midwicket by Saim, awarding Mehran his second wicket. Then, Khurram returned to dismiss the last two batters in the 18th over as Gladiators were bowled out for just 120, awarding Zalmi the game by 76 runs.
Mehran, Khurram, Saim and Wood bagged two scalps while Naveen and Jamal dismissed one batter each.
Quetta Gladiators Playing XI: Jason Roy, Saud Shakeel, Khawaja Nafay, Rilee Rossouw (c), Omair Bin Yousuf, Laurie Evans (wk) , Akeal Hosein, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Amir, Abrar Ahmed, Sohail Khan.
Peshawar Zalmi Playing XI: Saim Ayub, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Haris (wk), Tom Kohler Cadmore, Haseebullah Khan, Rovman Powell, Aamer Jamal, Luke Wood, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mehran Mumtaz, Khurram Shahzad.
