RAWALPINDI, APR 13: Lahore Qalandars exhibited a brilliant performance in all fields and grabbed a convincing victory over Quetta Gladiators by 79 runs in the fourth match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) Season 10 played at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing a daunting target of 220, Quetta crumbled under pressure and were bowled out for just 140 runs, thanks to a clinical bowling display by the Qalandars.
Lahore captain Shaheen Afridi set the tone early, dismissing Saud Shakeel for just one run in the opening over.
The Gladiators soon found themselves in deeper trouble as Asif Afridi removed Hassan Nawaz for one, and Shaheen struck again to send Finn Allen back for a duck, leaving Quetta reeling at 9-3 in 3.2 overs.
Rilee Rossouw and Kusal Mendis provided a brief resistance with a 45-run partnership. Mendis looked threatening with a quickfire 28 off 14 balls before Haris Rauf broke the stand, reducing Quetta to 54-4 in the sixth over.
Rossouw, in fine touch, smashed 44 off 19 balls, featuring four boundaries and as many sixes. However, his counterattack was cut short by Rishad Hossain, who claimed his maiden PSL wicket.
The collapse continued as Sikandar Raza dismissed Shoaib Malik for 14 and then removed Akeal Hosein in the same over.
Rishad Hossain returned to dismiss Mohammad Amir, and later Abrar Ahmed, sealing his third wicket of the match. Asif Afridi then cleaned up the tail, securing a massive 110-run win for the defending champions.
Batting first, Lahore suffered an early blow as Mohammad Naeem was bowled for 10 by Abrar Ahmed. Fakhar Zaman and Abdullah Shafique stabilized the innings with a 56-run partnership. Shafique scored a brisk 37 before falling to Akeal Hosein.
Fakhar continued to dominate with the bat, reaching his 20th PSL fifty. He was well-supported by Daryl Mitchell, who added a composed unbeaten 37 in an 80-run stand. Abrar struck again to remove Mitchell, followed shortly by Fakhar’s dismissal after a brilliant 67 off 39 deliveries.
Sam Billings then provided a blistering finish, hammering an unbeaten 50 off just 19 balls, propelling Lahore past the 200-run mark. Despite losing Sikandar Raza and Shaheen Afridi cheaply, Billings’ explosive knock helped the Qalandars post a commanding total of 220.
For Quetta, Akeal Hosein and Abrar Ahmed claimed two wickets each, while Faheem Ashraf and Usman Tariq chipped in with one apiece.
