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MATCH SUMMARY
Peshawar Zalmi, batting first - 206 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in their 20 overs; Mohammad Haris 70 (32) Islamabad United, batting second - 196 runs for the loss of 7 wickets in their 20 overs; Azam Khan 85 (45)
Peshawar Zalmi beat Islamabad United by 10 runs.
Player of the Match: Mohammad Haris - 70 (32) (7x4, 5x6) and a catch
Peshawar Zalmi are now 3rd on the table with 10 points from 9 matches while Islamabad United are 4th with 8 points from 8 matches.
The odds were stacked in favour of Peshawar Zalmi to begin with, given the number and quality of players that were missing for Islamabad United tonight but that did not stop Islamabad from putting up a tough fight and giving Peshawar some tough competition right till the end.
Chasing more than 200 was always going to be tough but the Islamabad batting began by scoring 50 runs in the first 3 overs of the innings, to bring the asking rate down to a reasonable one. They brought up their 100 in 10.3 overs, but even then, the required run-rate was manageable. After that, the hitting from their batters almost got them close to where they wanted to be but the fall of wickets towards the end, including the big ones, halted their march towards the winning score.
Azam Khan was simply brilliant, batting with responsibility and courage, and playing some breathtaking, effortless shots against all the bowlers to set up what could have been a successful run chase. He got good support Mubasir Khan, skipper Asif Ali and all-rounder Faheem Ashraf along the way. But in the end, it was too much to do for the likes of Marchant de Lange and Musa Khan, even though they did not give up till the final ball was bowled. Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored a bright and breezy 46 runs in quick time at the beginning of the innings to get things going for Islamabad straightaway.
With the ball, Wahab Riaz bowled a very impressive 19th over and picked up 2 wickets, while Hussain Talat, whose economical first spell put pressure on the Islamabad batters, picked up a wicket as well. But the pick of the bowlers was Salman Irshad who took 3 wickets, giving away only 29 runs in his 4 overs in a high-scoring match. Ben Cutting chipped in with a wicket as well. The spinners from Peshawar were disappointing, partly because of the dew and partly because of the lengths they chose to bowl.
The fielding and the catching could have been a lot better from Peshawar Zalmi, on the whole.
In the 1st innings, it was the Mohammad Haris show for quite a long time and it was a fascinating show to say the least! His confidence to take on pace bowling and the composure to handle spin bowling was the highlight. His knock gave the Peshawar innings necessary momentum, heading into the latter stages of the innings. The fielding from Islamabad too helped Peshawar post a huge total, along with, the extras they conceded.
There were useful runs scored by Yasir Khan, Shoaib Malik and Sherfane Rutherford, that were instrumental in Peshawar going past 200.
With the ball, Faheem Ashraf, Waqas Maqsood and Liam Dawson were good on most counts, as that helped Islamabad get back into the innings by not giving away runs in excess of 210, that looked likely at one stage.
It was a cracking game that we could cover for you and it gives us a lot of pleasure to be able to bring you such action, live! Stay tuned to Sportskeeda for more cricket coming your way from PSL 7, 2022, as we look to find the remaining teams to go through to the final four! With the action concluding at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, allow us - the pair of Dwijesh and Bidipto - to take your leave now!
POST-MATCH PRESENTATION
Islamabad United captain, Asif Ali: The pitch was very good and we almost got hold of the run chase. Wahab Riaz and Salman Irshad bowled really well towards the end and we could not get the runs during that stage. I thought the difference was in our inability at the end to get those runs required. There were many options to use with the ball, so I did not need to bowl to be honest.
Player of the Match, Mohammad Haris: The idea is always to get on with the runs straightaway and the credit always goes to the Zalmi management for letting me do that. There is premeditation in my batting but reading the bowler is also part of my agenda.
Peshawar Zalmi captain, Wahab Riaz: The batters took very good advantage of the power play. Haris was the difference, as simple as that. I am happy to have bowled the 19th over well, I was confident, having bowled so many in my career before. This win will help us to progress further in the competition for sure.
Ben Cutting: There were a few nerves in between as I didn't bowl much in the BBL as well. Happy to get the job done with the ball Wahab was great, the way he bowled all night and in the 19th over was brilliant. It's pretty tough to take catches here but was happy with the catch of Azam Khan. One more game to go and hoping to win that one but a couple of days to chill out.
Peshawar Zalmi manage to pip their opponents by 10 runs!
20
overs
196/7score
2
2
1
4
1
1
runs
Muhammad Musa
6(5)
Marchant de Lange*
7(6)
Ben Cutting
1/37
19.6 Ben Cutting to Merchant de Lange, a full ball on middle and off, de Lange edges it onto his pads but comes through for a single but it won't matter as Peshawar Zalmi beat Islamabad United by 10 runs!
19.5 Ben Cutting to Musa Khan, a full-toss bowled outside off, Musa can only heave it to short cover for a single
Thirteen to get off two balls!
19.4 Ben Cutting to Musa Khan, FOUR! There is life in this game! A full ball bowled on the off-stump, Musa smacks it down the ground for a boundary. Fancy two sixes anybody?
19.3 Ben Cutting to Merchant de Lange, a full ball bowled outside off, de Lange drives it to extra cover for a single
Video
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Muhammad Musa
Ben Cutting
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
