Quetta outclass Zalmi with dominant 80-run victory in PSL 10
RAWALPINDI: Quetta Gladiators kicked off their Pakistan Super League (PSL) 10 campaign in style, crushing Peshawar Zalmi by 80 runs in a commanding performance at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
Tasked with chasing a challenging target of 217, Peshawar faltered early and never recovered, bowled out for just 136 despite a fighting effort from Saim Ayub, who top-scored for his side. The rest of the batting lineup crumbled under pressure, unable to offer much resistance.
The trouble began right away when skipper Babar Azam departed for a duck in the very first over, handing a soft dismissal to Mohammad Amir. Though Saim Ayub and Mohammad Haris tried to revive the innings with a brief stand, their momentum was soon halted.
Spin wizard Abrar Ahmed flipped the game firmly in Quetta’s favour during the fourth over, removing Haris for 13 and Tom Kohler-Cadmore for a duck in a double-strike that left Zalmi reeling at 30-3.
Ayub and Hussain Talat offered a glimmer of hope with a 60-run partnership, but Usman Tariq broke through by dismissing Talat for a quick 35. He then struck again on the final ball of the 11th over to send Max Bryant back for a duck, as Zalmi slumped to 93-5.
Despite Ayub’s fighting half-century—his eighth in PSL—Quetta kept the pressure high. Kyle Jamieson sent Ayub packing, triggering another collapse. By the 12th over, Zalmi were hanging by a thread at 103-6.
A sharp direct hit from Sean Abbott ran out Alzarri Joseph, before Abrar returned to mop up the tail, dismissing Sufiyan Muqeem and Mohammad Ali for ducks to complete a four-wicket haul. Mohammad Amir then sealed the win by cleaning up Mitchell Owen, ending Zalmi’s innings at 132 in just 13.3 overs.
Earlier, after being put in to bat, Quetta’s opening pair of Finn Allen and skipper Saud Shakeel provided a flying start. They smashed 67 runs in the powerplay, with Allen in destructive mode—especially in the seventh over, where he took 23 runs off Muqeem to raise his maiden PSL fifty in style.
Though Muqeem later dismissed Allen for a blistering 53 off 25, the damage was done. Shakeel carried on with a composed knock, registering his third PSL fifty and adding 63 more with Hasan Nawaz, who played a fine hand with 41 off 32 balls.
Both fell in quick succession, but the finishing touches came from Rilee Rossouw and Kusal Mendis, who unleashed an unbeaten 58-run blitz in the final overs. Rossouw cracked 21 off 10, while Mendis exploded with 35 off just 14 balls, pushing Quetta to a mammoth 216.
Despite a few breakthroughs, Zalmi’s bowling unit—Muqeem, Joseph, and Raza—struggled to contain the relentless Gladiators, who signaled their intent loud and clear in the season opener.
