It took three years and a big blunder of the size of Hussain Talat by the skipper Shadab for Islamabad united to lose a game against Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League, but it finally did happen. In the opening game of the PSL’s sixth edition’s Abu Dhabi leg, Lahore Qlanadras needed 16 runs off the last over and even though, Shadab himself had conceded just 23 runs in his three overs to pick an important wicket as well.
But instead of applying himself in the final over, he chose to go to an inexperienced part-time medium-pacer Talat to deliver for the team, which he couldn’t as he was hammered for three fours of the first three balls by Rashid Khan, a double on the fourth delivery meant that only two runs were required of the last two balls and the Afghan took a single to put Singaporian Tim David on strike. Talat bowled a bouncer at last, but a top edge behind the wicket-keeper meant that Qalandars not only won the game by five wickets but also went on to top the table.
Explaining this move after the game, Shadab said that due to Ben Dunk, a left-hander being on the crease, he, a leggie could not bowl his one spare over during the 15-19 overs. “When it came to the 20th, the ball was wet and Hussain in the past and in nets had bowled. I was confident in him, unfortunately, it didn’t turn out in our favour. But if given a chance and we are stuck in a similar situation, I would once again for Hussain, ‘ said 22-year-old United skipper.
Chasing a small but tricky target of 144 on a two-paced wicket in Abu Dhabi at the Shiekh Zayed Stadium, Lahore didn’t have a great start. Hard hitter Fakhar Zaman was bowled for nine runs by Faheem Ashraf. Sonn after youngster Mohammad Faizan was removed by Shadab at the team score of 44. Mohammad Hafeez and skipper Sohail Akhtar then put up a partnership of 38 runs before a brilliant review, asked for by wicketkeeper Rohail Nazir and taken by skipper Shadab, got Sohail out leg before wicket on the bowling of Fawad Ahmed.
Hafeez was trapped by Hasan Ali on a slower delivery just one over after Sohail’s wicket. Ben Dunk and his young Australian compatriot David tried to get as close to the target as possible. The duo added 25 in 23 balls and just as they were about to tee off, another brilliant slower one by Ali in the 19th over removed Dunk.
It would have been a perfect 19th over had David not hit a six off the last ball to bring the equation down from 22 off seven balls to 16 off six.
Earlier in the evening, after winning the toss, Sohail invited Islamabad to bat first. The red lions couldn’t really get going and as a result, lost wickets at regular interval. In fact, at one point in time, they were struggling at 109-8 in 16.5 overs before Mohammad Wasim Junior combined with Faheem to take the team to a fighting total of 143. Qalandars skipper too agreed to the fact that his bowlers gave away extra runs to the tailenders at the end. “We gave away 10-15 runs more than we should have,” Sohail said during the post-match presentation ceremony.
The 24-year-old Rashid might not have picked too many wickets, but he along with James Faulkner were the pick of the bowlers. While Faulkner took three early wickets in the powerplay, Rashid gave away just nine runs in his four overs while taking the wicket of Talat. For his extraordinary bowling and match-winning batting, Rashid was adjudged Man of the Match.
The Qalandars will be in action once again on Thursday, June 10 when they take on Peshawar Zalmi in the second game of the doubleheaders. United on the other hand would face Quetta Gladiators on June 11 at the same venue.