Peshawar Zalmi showed their strength even without two key bowlers. Nahid Rana and Shoriful Islam left the team to join the ODI series between Bangladesh national cricket team and New Zealand national cricket team. Many wondered if Zalmi could keep their unbeaten run. They answered that question with another dominating win.
Chasing 155, Zalmi stayed calm from the start. Kusal Mendis made 21 from 19 balls after coming in at number three. Then Babar Azam took charge. He played a steady knock and stayed not out on 71 from 51 balls. He built a good stand with Aaron Hardie, who made 18* from 14 balls. Babar’s 71* was the hundredth half century of his T20 career, making him only the fourth batter to reach the milestone. Zalmi reached the target with eight wickets in hand.
Earlier, Quetta Gladiators could not post a big total after being sent in to bat in Karachi. They were all out for 154. Hasan Nawaz scored 37 from 35 balls. Rilee Rossouw added 26 from 18 balls. Khawaja Nafay made 20 from 13 balls.
Zalmi’s bowlers did well despite the absence of their main pacers. Sufiyan Muqeem and Mohammad Basit took three wickets each. Iftikhar Ahmed got one. Muqeem and Iftikhar kept the ball slow and gave it good flight. It made things hard for the batters.
For Quetta, Saud Shakeel and Alzarri Joseph picked up one wicket each.
With this win, Peshawar Zalmi stayed unbeaten and strong at the top of the table. They now have 13 points from seven matches. Multan Sultans are in second place with 8 points.
