Zalmi Win, Iftikhar and Jordan could not Get Sultans over the Line

Muhammad Waqas

Peshawar Zalmi: 204/5 (20) | Babar 64(40), Saim 46(22) | Usama 3/32, Jordan 2/33

Multan Sultans: 200/5 (20) | Iftikhar 60*(27), Rizwan 32(24) | Jamal 2/36, Mehran 1/20

Multan Sultans fell agonizingly short of chasing down the target, succumbing to a narrow four-run defeat.

Iftikhar Ahmed’s explosive unbeaten 60 off 27 balls, accompanied by Chris Jordan’s quickfire 30 off 12 balls brought Multan excitingly close to the target. However, Courtesy of few perfect Yorkers by Salman Irshad, Sultans were restricted to 200/5. With 71 required off last 4 overs, Iftikhar and Jordan started to onslaught the Peshawar Zalmi bowler, putting together a blazing unbeaten 75-run stand off just 28 balls.

Chasing the target of 205 runs, Multan Sultans launched a spirited chase, led by captain Mohammad Rizwan, hitting 14 runs to Saim Ayub off the first over. However, debutant Mehran Mumtaz made an immediate impact, dismissing Reeza Hendricks in the fifth over. Despite Rizwan’s valiant 32, Multan’s chase faltered in the middle overs, with the wickets of Dawid Malan (19 off 19) and Tayyab Tahir (26 off 18) further denting the momentum. However, Iftikhar-Jordan blistering partnership reignited Multan’s hopes, as they started a relentless attack on the Zalmi bowers. 

For Peshawar Zalmi, Mehran Mumtaz bowled an impressive spell of 1/20 (4) on his Pakistan Super League debut. Aamer Jamal took two wickets for 36 runs, while Naveen ul Haq dismissed a batter.

Earlier, in the first innings, Peshawar Zalmi’s decision to bat first immediately bears fruit as they got off to a flying start. Saim Ayub and Babar Azam’s opening onslaught propels Zalmi to the highest Powerplay total of 71-0 in HBLPSL9. They combined 84 runs for the first wicket partnership before Usama Mir struck to dismiss Saim Ayub who scored 46 of 22, supported by five sixes and three boundaries.

However, Babar Azam continued to dominate, notching up his 85^th half-century in T20 career. But it was Usama Mir who struck again to remove Babar, triggering a mini collapse as Jordan accounted for Haseebullah’s wicket.

Rovman Powell and Aamer Jamal provided late flourishes to drive Zalmi to competitive total of 204/5 on the Rawalpindi’s flat surface. Powell and Jamal scored unbeaten 23 off 15 and 12 off 5 respectively.

After a spell of 3/32, Usama Mir finishes as the leading wicket taker in the ongoing Pakistan Super League season. While Chris Jordan took 2 wickets for 33 runs.