Rashid Khan (4-1-20-5) picked up his maiden five-wicket haul in franchise cricket to help Lahore Qalandars (LQ) beat Peshawar Zalmi by 10 runs in Match 17 of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2021 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi. The victory strengthened Lahore’s position at top of the points table, with five wins in six matches. Peshawar, on the other hand, remained at fourth, with three wins.
Earlier, Lahore were left reeling at 25/4 after Wahab Riaz won the toss and asked them to bat first. Ben Dunk (48 off 33) and Tim David (64 of 33) then added 81 runs in 50 balls for the fifth wicket before the former fell to Fabian Allen. However, David remained unbeaten and shared a quickfire 47-run stand with James Faulkner (22 off 7). They scored 90 runs in the final six overs to finish at 170/8.
Riaz (4-1-31-1), Mohammad Irfan (1-24) and Umaid Asif (1-31) were economical until Faulkner and David unleashed their attack. Mohammad Imran (1-34) also had a wicket, while Allen claimed two in his three overs, conceding 36.
Chasing 171, Peshawar lost Haider Ali (3) and Kamran Akmal (1) in the opening two overs. Coming at No. 3, Shoaib Malik smashed 46-ball 73 before being hit wicket in the 19th over, off Haris Rauf. Malik forged a 51-run stand for the third wicket with David Miller (21 off 23) before the latter was bowled by Rashid. Following the breakthrough, Rashid tore Peshawar middle-order batters apart. From 56/2, they slipped to 73/6.
Riaz (17 off 10) and Asif (23* off 12) put an effort towards the end, but with the damage done in the midway of the innings, they fell 10 runs short to the target to end at 160/8. Following the nail-biting contest against Islamabad United, Rashid was adjudged Player of the Match twice in three days after he single-handedly gave Lahore back-to-back victories.
Brief Scores
Lahore Qalandars 170/8 in 20 overs (Tim David 64*; Fabian Allen 2-36) beat Peshawar Zalmi 160/8 in 20 overs (Shoaib Malik 73; Rashid Khan 5-20) by 10 runs. Player of the Match: Rashid Khan.