After taking a break for a day, the Pakistan Super League 2023 returned to enthral the fans with some riveting cricketing action on February 26 (Sunday). Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi were up against each other in Match 15 of the competition at Gadaffi Stadium, Lahore.
Qalandars captain Shaheen Afridi won the toss and elected to bat first. However, his team got off to a miserable start as opener Mirza Tahir Baig lost his stumps against Wahab Riaz in the second over after scoring just five runs.
His dismissal brought Abdullah Shafique to the crease who put on a batting masterclass with Fakhar Zaman as they ripped apart the Zalmi bowling line up with a massive partnership of 120 runs off 69 balls.
However, the partnership was ended as Riaz picked up his second wicket, dismissing Shafique for 75 off 41 balls. S
am Billings walked to the crease at No. 4 and straight away got into the act with an 88-run stand with Zaman off just 30 balls, as both unleashed their beast mode on Zalmi bowlers.
Zaman fell just four runs short of his hundred, getting dismissed on 96 off 45 balls. by Rovman Powell. He clobbered three fours and ten sixes in his innings. On the other hand, Billings remained unbeaten on 47 off 23 balls as the Qalandars posted a massive 241/3 in their allotted 20 overs.
Shaheen Afridi’s five-wicket haul set up Qalandars’ victory
Zalmi got off to a miserable start while chasing, losing openers Babar Azam and Mohammad Haris inside three overs. Seeing their side in disarray, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Saim Ayyub added 91 runs for the third wicket in just 44 balls.
The partnership was broken in the 11th over by Haris Rauf as Kohler-Cadmore departed for 55 off 23 balls while Ayub got dismissed in the next over by Rashid Khan after scoring 51 off 34 balls.
Following their dismissals, no other batter could keep up with the required run rate. As a result, they finished their innings on 201/9, handing a 40-run win to the Qalandars. Shaheen Afridi was the pick of the bowlers as he scalped five wickets for 40 runs in his four overs.
Here’s how Twitter Reacted:
FAKHAR ZAMAN PROVING HIMSELF IN THE FIELD #MANOFTHEMATCH #HBLPSL8
11:14 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Last time PZ won a match vs LQ in regular time: COVID-19 was yet to breakout. Trump was still president of US. Mahira Khan was still doing roles of school girls. Pak had 0 WC wins vs Ind. Kohli was ranked no 1 in odis. KK,MS and LQ had 0 PSL trophies Amir was still a fast bowler
11:13 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Congratulations @iShaheenAfridi you dismissed @babarazam258 second time in PSL
11:13 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Why players like Powel & Rajapaksa r signed in such big leagues? Watching the batting of these two, it felt that they dont have any game awareness. They batted without looking at the required RR. Franchises need to bring quality players to PSL. #LQvPZ #PSL2023 #FakharZaman
11:13 PM · Feb 26, 2023
@ArfaSays_ Ready product header ali jaisa??? Azam khan ke liye awaz nhi nikal rhi tum logo ki
@MHassan_33 @ArfaSays_ Haider Ali was psl product, overhyped due to his power hitting in psl. Saim ayub has been performing in domestic cricket from a long time. People were excited to see him in PSL
11:13 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Peshawar k pass 2 ache bowlers hotey toh woh PSL k best bowling attack ko hara detey.. They don’t have a single bowler who can bowl 4 overs with assurity.. #PZvsLQ #LQvPZ
11:18 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Required run rate is 20. Fans to Zalmi batsmen: #PSL2023 #PZvsLQ
11:18 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Jis tarah se humare players PSL mein khelte hain kaash kabhi ICC tournaments mein bhi khel leyn. #PZvLQ
11:18 PM · Feb 26, 2023
Tbh l love the vibe of psl in Lahore than in Karachi the dhool in back ground is something amazing really representing our culture #PZvsLQ
11:21 PM · Feb 26, 2023
SHAHEEN SHAH AFRIDI 🙌🔥… Best bowler of the entire PSL history 5fer ❤️❤️❤️
11:23 PM · Feb 26, 2023
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