KARACHI: Mohammad Hafeez played a dazzling undefeated knock of 74 as Lahore Qalandars knocked Peshawar Zalmi out by five wickets in the first Eliminator of the Pakistan Super League at National Stadium Karachi here on Saturday night. The win knocked out Peshawar from the tournament and set the stage for the second Eliminator, which will be played between Multan Sultans and Lahore on Sunday. Chasing a tricky target of 171 runs, Lahore got off to a shaky start after Peshawar’s pacer Saqib Mahmood removed both openers Fakhar Zaman (6) and Tamim Iqbal (18) in the third over of the chase. Zaman edged behind to wicketkeeper Imamul Haq whereas Tamim miscued pull shot which was safely grasped by the part-time gloveman. Lahore skipper Sohail Akhtar (7) did not have much luck either and was removed by Mahmood, caught by skipper Wahab Riaz. Veteran all-rounder Hafeez hen made good use of his stellar recent run and started to lay a foundation for the chase. The 40-year-old tried and failed to forge meaningful partnerships with batsmen Ben Dunk (20) and Samit Patel (20) who were removed by bowlers Mohammad Imran and Rahat Ali respectively before making significant scores.
With a rising run-rate and mounting pressure, Hafeez took matters into his own hands and started to up the ante. The veteran took calculated risks and played a magnificent unbeaten knock off 46 deliveries to bring Lahore to within touching distance of an incredible victory. With the finishing line in sight, all-rounder David Wiese hit two magnificent sixes to propel his side to victory, with an over to spare, for the loss of five wickets. Mahmood was the pick of the bowlers for Peshawar after claiming three wickets in four overs at the expense of 41 runs.
Earlier, Peshawar Zalmi posted 170 for nine after Lahore captain Sohail elected to field. Haider Ali became Shaheen Shah Afridi’s first scalp as he was bowled on the second ball of the match. A 31-run second wicket partnership between Imam (24 off 19, two sixes) and Sohaib Maqsood (16 off 17, one four and one six) denied any further inroads to the Lahore bowlers. Faf du Plessis marked his PSL debut with a 25-ball 31, in which he struck a four and a six, and stitched a 31-run stand with veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik, who with 39 off 24 balls was the top-scorer in the innings. Both batsmen were dismissed by Dilbar Hussain, who finished with the figures of three for 33.
Following du Plessis’ dismissal, Shoaib, who smashed two sixes and as many fours, anchored Peshawar innings. But it was Hardus Viljoen’s 16-ball 37 in the final moments of the innings that took Peshawar to an imposing total. He smoked Haris Rauf for six, four, six in the first three balls of the last over, before smashing him for another four on the penultimate ball of the innings. He fell on the last ball becoming Haris’ second wicket, but before that, he had amassed 20 runs from the over. Shaheen and Wiese were the other two bowlers to take two wickets in the innings.