KARACHI: Last year’s runners-up Lahore Qalandars defeated Peshawar Zalmi by four wickets in the Pakistan Super League VI match at the National Stadium here on Sunday. Lahore, who had never won their opening match in any of the five previous editions, chased down the 141-run target for the loss of six wickets with nine balls to spare. Mohammad Hafeez anchored Lahore innings with an unbeaten 33 off 26 balls, hitting five fours. Rashid Khan blasted his way to 27 as he smashed three fours and a six, which sealed the match, in his undefeated 15-ball knock. Both batsmen contributed an unbroken 34-run partnership for the seventh-wicket. Before the two came together, Lahore found themselves in a spot of bother following back-to-back dismissals of Samit Patel (eight off 11 balls) and David Weise in the 16th over as Saqib Mahmood, who returned two for 22, bowled the former and trapped the latter in front of stumps. Peshawar captain Wahab Riaz also accounted for two batsmen as he finished with the figures of two for 30.
Earlier, after winning the toss, Lahore opted to field and they justified their decision by getting early wickets. Peshawar’s top order crumbled and only Ravi Bopara (50) and Shoaib Malik (26) showed some resistance. Peshawar managed to put on 140-6 in their allotted 20 overs. Lahore were provided an excellent start by Shaheen Shah Afridi. The left-arm quick induced a leading edge off Imam-ul-Haq on the first ball of the match with a delivery that shaped away from the left-handed batsman to provide the first breakthrough. Shaheen bowled impeccable lengths, denying the opposition batsman any opportunities to score against him, and finished with three for 14 in four overs, which bagged him the player-of-the-match award. Peshawar were reeling at four for 46 in the eighth over, before Ravi Bopara and Sherfane Rutherford got together and stitched a valuable 64 runs for the fifth-wicket. Bopara, who featured for Multan Sultans in the fifth edition, top-scored with a 44-ball 50. His innings included six boundaries. Rutherford, picked by Peshawar in the diamond category, scored 26 off 27. His first of two sixes, was the first of the match, hit off David Wiese’s bowling in the 13th over. After the departure of both batsmen, Amad Butt, batting at number seven, contributed a quickfire unbeaten 23 off 11 balls. His two maximums were hit in the 20th over, which helped the side to a decent finish.
Scores in brief:
Lahore Qalandars beat Peshawar Zalmi by four wickets
Peshawar Zalmi 140-6, 20 overs (Ravi Bopara 50, Shoaib Malik 26, Sherfane Rutherford 26, Amad Butt 23 not out; Shaheen Shah Afridi 3-14, Mohammad Salman Mirza 2-35) VS Lahore Qalandars 143-6, 18.3 overs (Mohammad Hafeez 33 not out, Rashid Khan 27 not out, Ben Dunk 22; Saqib Mahmood 2-22, Wahab Riaz 2-30)
Player-of-the-match: Shaheen Shah Afridi (Lahore Qalandars).
Today’s match
Lahore Qalandars vs Quetta Gladiators at 7:00 pm