ABU DHABI: Resurgent Quetta Gladiators defeated Lahore Qalandars by 18 runs today (Tuesday) in match 23 of the Pakistan Super League 6 at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium.
Chasing a target of 159, Qalandars suffered an early blow when Usman Shinwari dismissed their captain Sohail Akhtar in the first over. Gladiators continued to exert pressure as Mohammad Hasnain clean bowled Fakhar Zaman for 12.
Shinwari, in the fifth over, piled up the pressure on Qalandars, sending Mohammad Hafeez (1) back to the pavilion, while Khurram Shahzad took the wicket of Zeeshan Ashraf (16) in the sixth over.
Following in his teammates’ footsteps, Mohammad Nawaz took the important wickets of Ben Dunk (6) and Rashid Khan in the seventh and ninth overs, respectively. In the 12th over, Shahzad dismissed Ahmed Daniyal (3).
As wickets kept falling at the other end, Tim David kept the scoreboard moving for Qalandars through his blistering knock. David was sprinting towards the target, but couldn’t take Qalandars over the line as he was caught behind for 46 on the final ball of Shinwari’s spell.
Shaheen Shah Afridi, who scored 12 runs, was dismissed by Shahzad in the 17th over, while Hasnain sent Haris Rauf (19) back to the pavilion to end the match and take the Gladiators to victory.
Earlier, Lahore Qalandars restricted Quetta Gladiators to 158-5 after winning the toss and opting to field first. The Qalandars’ bowlers performed well, with James Faulkner taking three wickets, while Mohammad Hafeez and Rashid Khan picked up a wicket each.
Azam Khan (33) was hitting some good shots — and it seemed like he would give the Gladiators a much-needed breakthrough — but he was dismissed by Faulkner, while Mohammad Nawaz (6) was also sent packing in the same over.
Jake Weatherald (48) helped the team put up some runs on the scoreboard, before Mohammad Hafeez got the better of him, bowling him out in the 10th over.
