Zaman, Hafeez strike as Lahore down Quetta by nine wickets

KARACHI: Opening batsman Fakhar Zaman and veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez sparkled with bat as Lahore Qalandars thrashed Quetta Gladiators by nine wickets in their Pakistan Super League VI match at National Stadium here on Monday night. Chasing a formidable victory target of 179, Lahore raced home for the loss of one just one wicket with 10 balls to spare. The innings was opened by Zaman and Sohail Akhtar who frustrated the Quetta bowlers with their stable partnership and multiple boundaries. They cemented their partnership over the next few overs before Akhtar (21) was bowled by leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood. Akhtar was replaced by Hafeez, who along with Zaman lifted up their score from 69-1 at the end of 10 overs to 131 by the 15th over without any further wicket loss. Zaman and Hafeez smashed a partnership of 115. Zaman (82) and Sohail earlier had added 64 runs for the opening wicket before Hafeez’s scintillating innings of 73 off just 33 balls made sure that Lahore got the job done.

Earlier, Quetta made 178 with captain Sarfraz Ahmed (40) and Chris Gayle (68) as the star scorers, after they were put into bat. The duo put up a strong partnership after opener Tom Banton (4) got out in the second over and Saim Ayub scoring only three runs before returning to the pavilion. Sarfraz lost his wicket in the 13th over, caught out by Ben Dunk off Haris Rauf’s ball. Gayle was bowled out by Rashid Khan in the very next over after his 40 balls knock. Quetta lost their fifth wicket when Azam Khan was caught out by Shaheen Shah Afridi on Ahmed Daniyal’s ball. Rauf struck again in the last over, bowling out Ben Cutting. Haris was the pick of the bowlers for Lahore, claiming three wickets. Quetta entered the match after suffering a seven-wicket defeat at the hands of Karachi Kings in the first match on Saturday. Lahore, meanwhile, won their opening match by four wickets against Peshawar Zalmi on Sunday.