Gladiators replace United at the top of the standings
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LAHORE: 2019 champions Quetta Gladiators registered a narrow two-wicket victory over defending champions Islamabad United in the 23rd match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 10 here at the Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday.
Put into bat first, the United registered a commendable total of 157/9 on the board, courtesy of Mohammad Nawaz’s blistering knock.
The all-rounder top-scored for United with a valiant 49 off 34 deliveries with the help of one four and five sixes.
Besides him, openers Sahibzada Farhan (39) and Kyle Maters (22) made notable contributions.
Faheem Ashraf was the standout bowler for the Gladiators, taking four wickets for just 25 runs in his three overs. He was supported by Khurram, Abrar, Saud and Jamieson, who made one scalp apiece.
Chasing a 158-run target, the Gladiators knocked the winning runs on the penultimate delivery of the innings when Hasan Nawaz smashed Muhammad Shahzad for a six over deep backward square.
The right-handed batter smashed two fours and four sixes on his way to an unbeaten 64 off 41 deliveries.
He was supported by Rilee Rossouw (27) and Mohammad Wasim Jr (16), who played a pivotal role in leading the Gladiators to victory.
The two-wicket victory lifted the Gladiators to replace Islamabad United at the top of the PSL 10 standings as they now have 11 points after eight matches, while the defending champions slipped to second after their third consecutive defeat.
| Teams | Matches | Wins | Losses | No Result | Points | Net Run Rate |
| Quetta Gladiators | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 0.906 |
| Islamabad United | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0.650 |
| Lahore Qalandars | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 1.110 |
| Karachi Kings | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0.445 |
| Peshawar Zalmi | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | -0.507 |
| Multan Sultans | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | -2.597 |
Two-time champions Lahore Qalandars remained third with nine points in eight matches and are closely followed by arch-rivals Karachi Kings, who are fourth with eight points in a game less.
Babar Azam’s Peshawar Zalmi hold fifth position with six points after seven matches, while Multan Sultans, the only team to be knocked out of the playoffs race, remained at the bottom with just two points in eight games.
