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At the Multan Cricket Stadium on Monday, Lahore Qalandars defeat Multan Sultans in the opening game of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2023.
Khushdil Shah brought the pursuit perilously close by hitting two boundaries off the final two balls. In the final over, young Zaman Khan held off 14 runs to help his team win.
The 100-run first-wicket stand between Mohammad Rizwan and Shan Masood gave the Sultans a commanding advantage. In the PSL season, Rizwan scored his twelfth fifty against the reigning champions.
The bowlers for the Qalandars were unable to escape because the two batsmen held their positions at the wicket for a considerable amount of time. The first success for the Qalandars came from Hussain Talat, who sent Masood back to the pavilion after he scored 35 off 31 balls.
After scoring 75 runs in 50 balls, Rizwan was bowled out by Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi, bringing the home team’s total to 131-2.
The Qalandars captain and his bowling partner, Haris Rauf, refocused his team’s participation in the game after the first two innings.
Rauf’s blistering yorker struck South Africa’s David Miller, known for his incredible swing, who was out for 25 runs.
Exciting Match as Qalandars Defeat Sultans by 2 Runs in PSL, Fakhar Scores 66 in Batting First
Shaheen handed the ball to Zaman as there were still 15 runs needed in the penultimate over. However, after throwing a fantastic yorker to begin the over, the youthful player handed up a run.
On the next ball, Kieron Pollard was out of the game for failing to make it to the crease while attempting to run for two runs.
Usman Khan was struck by Zaman’s third delivery, a quick full-toss that impacted the thigh pad of Usman Khan, and was subsequently declared leg before wicket.
After bowling a wide and another excellent delivery, right-arm bowler Usama Mir was run out and out for a duck.
Even though the Sultans missed their goal by two runs, Khushdil’s final two balls produced back-to-back fours.
The defending champions, Qalandars, scored 176 runs in 20 overs thanks to Fakhar’s 66 runs off 42 balls, earning them the right to bat first. The left-handed batter consequently scored his final 2000 PSL runs.
Mirza Tahir Baig, a young opener, scored 36 runs off only 26 balls before being caught by Akeal Hossain.
The two hitters improved the team’s position and laid the groundwork for the Qalandars with a first-wicket partnership of 61 runs.
Shai Hope, the wicketkeeper, scored 19 runs off 17 balls in the interim.
Hussain Talat and Sikandar Raza’s 39-run fifth wicket stand helped their team reach a respectable total.
Multan Sultans had two wickets each from Ihsanullah and Akeal, but just one from Usama.