Professional Peshawar Zalmi hand Karachi Kings their sixth consecutive defeat
A 97-run opening stand from Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Haris took Zalmi to 193, and Kings never got going in the chase
A 97-run opening stand from Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Haris took Zalmi to 193, and Kings never got going in the chase
Scorer: Binoy George | Commentator: Ekanth and Abdul Shakeel
Thank you for tuning into our coverage. A shoutout to all the fans who wrote in during the game, we appreciate your enthusiasm and love for the game. I'm Ekanth, signing off on behalf of my fellow commentator, Abdul Shakeel, and our scorer for the match, Binoy George.
Do join us for our coverage of today's second game in the PSL between Lahore and Quetta. You can follow it here
Interviews from the Post Match presentations:
Wahab Riaz, Peshawar Captain: Credit to the boys for bowling well. We had to work hard and the bowlers did well in the powerplay. As the ball got old, the length ball was harder to execute and score but they bowled well. We choose the team for the day and they played well to bring up a win.
Babar Azam, Karachi Captain: I felt the score in the first innings was too high. The drop chances and death bowling led to a score that was well over par. We played poorly in the powerplay, we couldn't get and that cost us the match. The discussion was to go after their bowlers and pick our matchups but they bowled well and deserve credit for it.
Mohammad Harris, Player of the Match: Team supported me and that helped me get back after a drop. Jos Buttler has been my role model, but Rizwan is coming up now (smiles). We tried to learn from the last match and made the most of the powerplay, the shots came off and I'm happy. Youngsters don't get many opportunities so I'll try to make the most of every opportunity that I get.
This 55 run defeat might mean the end of the road Karachi's season who are winless after six games. Peshawar keep afloat in the season but with a poor net run rate and an extra game when compared to the four teams above them. Here is the Points table for your reference.
There will be many questions asked about the batters' intent in the second innings, the fielding in the first innings will also call for scrutiny. But that's from Karachi's point of view. Peshawar will be happy as their openers along with a couple of their experienced players from the middle order fired with the bat. The bowling effectively restricted the run flow and virtually closed out the game after the first ten over. They would love to continue the win with consistent performances in the future.
Fahad Butt : "Why is Babar always criticised when other batsman order him don't job their job. That is being harsh. All need to chip in to get target chased. Doesn't happen from one end." The issue was that no one went hard or tried to keep up with the required rate until it was way too late. Sharjeel struggling in the beginning was bad but a 60-run partnership for the second wicket off 53 balls is not good enough while chasing 194.
6:05 pm: "A really tame end... to the match", says David Gower on air with a sigh. Can't argue with it. Sadly, it was tame almost throughout the second innings. Peshawar's celebrations are subdued. They knew the game was in the kitty well in advance.
Around the wicket
Aamer Yamin c Livingstone b Wahab Riaz 6 (11m 5b 0x4 0x6) SR: 120.00
Wajid Jawaid : "I don't agree that Babar played well. You play according to the situation. Playing like this, he would have played well if the target was 144, not 194" That's sombre but reasonable
IA Cockbain c Amad Butt b Wahab Riaz 14 (16m 13b 0x4 1x6) SR: 107.69
Salman: "With Shadab, Rizwan and Shaheen doing great as captains and players in this PSL season, this failure of Babar will have far-reaching consequences putting his captaincy of the national team under the radar everytime."
A 97-run opening stand from Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Haris took Zalmi to 193, and Kings never got going in the chase