News by “Sana Ullah”
KARACHI: A collective bowling display, coupled with Yasir Khan’s explosive half-century, propelled Multan Sultans to a convincing seven-wicket victory over Peshawar Zalmi, booking their spot in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) final.
Given a target of 147 to chase, the Sultans comfortably reached the total, losing just three wickets and with nine balls to spare, largely thanks to a commanding innings by Yasir at the top of the order.
The Sultans began their chase in style with Yasir and Mohammad Rizwan forging a brisk 61-run partnership.
Yasir led the charge while Rizwan provided stability until he was dismissed by Aamer Jamal in the eighth over after scoring 15 runs off 21 balls.
Yasir then combined with Usman Khan for a brief 23-run stand before departing after completing his fifty.
He top-scored for the Sultans with a rapid 54 off 37 deliveries, featuring seven boundaries and a six.
Usman took the reins of the chase, remaining unbeaten on 36 off 28 balls to guide the Sultans to victory, with valuable support from Iftikhar Ahmed, who contributed a quickfire 22 off just eight balls.
For Peshawar Zalmi, Aamer Jamal, Salman Irshad, and Mehran Mumtaz managed to take a wicket each.
Opting to bat first, Zalmi struggled to post a competitive total despite a solid innings from Babar Azam.
Zalmi got off to a poor start, losing opener Saim Ayub for just one run in the first over.
Following the early setback, Mohammad Haris partnered with Babar to add 46 runs for the second wicket before falling to Mohammad Ali in the sixth over.
Zalmi suffered another blow when Usama Mir dismissed Haseebullah Khan for three runs in the eighth over.
However, Babar held firm, scoring 46 off 42 balls before being bowled by Chris Jordan in the 14th over.
He was the top-scorer for Zalmi, hitting five boundaries.
Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Rovman Powell made useful contributions before Paul Walter and Luke Wood provided late impetus.
Walter and Wood shared an unbroken 15-run stand for the eighth wicket, guiding Zalmi past the 140-run mark.
Wood played a key role in the partnership, smashing 14 runs off just seven balls, including one boundary and a six.
Usama Mir and Chris Jordan led the bowling attack for Multan Sultans, taking two wickets each, while David Wiley, Mohammad Ali, and Abbas Afridi also chipped in with a wicket apiece.
