Peshawar Zalmi sealed a commanding seven-wicket win over Lahore Qalandars on Thursday, powered by a clinical bowling display and a composed, unbeaten partnership between captain Babar Azam and Hussain Talat.
Chasing 130, Zalmi had a rocky start, losing Saim Ayub and Tom Kohler-Cadmore with just seven runs on the board. Mohammad Haris added a quick-fire 20 but fell to a slower ball from Shaheen Afridi, leaving Zalmi in trouble at 40 for 3 inside five overs.
A pivotal moment came when Babar Azam was given out LBW but successfully overturned the decision via DRS. From there, the Zalmi skipper took charge. Alongside Hussain Talat, Babar stitched together an unbeaten 93-run stand to steer his side home with 20 balls to spare.
Babar, who had been searching for form throughout the tournament, finally registered his first half-century of the season with a composed 56 off 42 balls. Talat provided the perfect support, finishing with an 51 off just 37 deliveries.
Shaheen Afridi was the pick of the Qalandars’ bowlers, finishing with two wickets, while Haris Rauf claimed the scalp of Saim Ayub.
Earlier, Peshawar Zalmi’s bowlers put on a clinical performance, as they restricted Lahore Qalandars to a modest 129 in 19.3 overs. After being put in to bat, Lahore Qalandars’ top order once again faltered, collapsing under the pressure of disciplined, tight bowling from the Peshawar Zalmi attack. Alzarri Joseph and Luke Wood led the charge with relentless accuracy, sharing five wickets between them and never allowing Lahore to find any rhythm.
Fakhar Zaman fell early as he was bowled by Joseph for 10 off 8 balls. The decision to promote lower-order batter Asif Ali backfired, as he was trapped leg-before by Luke Wood for just 5. Abdullah Shafique followed soon after, falling for a four-ball duck, caught off the bowling of Alzarri Joseph further denting Lahore’s shaky start.
Daryl Mitchell (2) and Sam Billings (9) followed soon after, leaving Lahore reeling at 33 for 5.
Captain Shaheen Shah Afridi tried to counter-attack with a quick 16 off 10 balls, including two sixes, before being caught behind off Hussain Talat. The only meaningful resistance came from Sikandar Raza, who played a gritty knock of 52 from 37 deliveries, striking five boundaries and three sixes to lift his side past the 100-run mark.
Raza found brief support from Rishad Hossain (13) and Haris Rauf (10), but regular wickets at the other end meant the innings never gained momentum. Lahore eventually folded for 128 in 19.3 overs.
Joseph led the charge with his pace and bounce, dismantling the top order and ending with exceptional figures of 3 for 16 in four overs, while Wood chipped in with 2 for 25.
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