RAWALPINDI – Lahore Qalandars beat Quetta Gladiators by 79 runs in the PSL X match at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing a challenging 220-run target for the victory, Gladiators kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were bundled out for 140 in 16.2 overs.
Rilee Rossouw was the top scorer with 44 runs followed by Kusal Mendis who made 28. Faheem Ashraf contributed 21, Shoaib Malik 14 and Akeal Hosein 13 runs. No other batter could enter the double figures.
Rishad Hossain bagged three wickets and Shaheen Shah Afridi, Asif Afridi and Sikandar Raza two each while Haris Rauf got one wicket. Fakhar Zaman was named player of the match.
After being asked to bat first by Gladiators skipper Saud Shakeel, Lahore Qalandars reached 219/6 in the allocated 20 overs.
After losing Mohammad Naeem (10) early, Fakhar Zaman (67) first stitched a 56-run partnership with Abdullah Shafique (37) and then an 80-run stand with Daryl Mitchell (37) to set the stage for a big score.
Despite losing wickets in quick succession at the later stage, Sam Billings (50) ensured a strong finish to set a competitive target for the Gladiators.
Abrar Ahmed and Akeal Hosein bagged two wickets each while Usman Tariq and Faheem Ashraf took one wicket each.
Lahore Qalandars: Fakhar Zaman, Muhammad Naeem, Abdullah Shafique, Daryl Mitchell, Sam Billings (wk), Sikandar Raza, Shaheen Afridi (c), Jahandad Khan, Rishad Hossain, Haris Rauf, Asif Afridi
Quetta Gladiators: Saud Shakeel (c), Finn Allen, Hassan Nawaz, Kusal Mendis (wk), Rilee Rossouw, Shoaib Malik, Faheem Ashraf, Akeal Hosain, Mohammad Amir, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq
