ABU DHABI: Islamabad United edged spirited Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs in a record high-scoring Pakistan Super League game on Thursday.
Islamabad stand-in captain Usman Khawaja hit an unbeaten 105 off 56 balls in his team’s PSL record total of 247-2 after Peshawar won the toss and elected to bat in its last league game.
Peshawar nearly upstaged Khawaja’s brilliant effort with a 232-6 reply as Shoaib Malik (68) and Kamran Akmal (53) led the charge.
“It was enjoyable to bat 20 overs,” Khawaja said. “I’m not trying to take anything away from our bowlers because they put in a great effort, but Shadab was resting. We knew we were probably going one short on pace.”
Islamabad bettered its own previous PSL record of 238-3 against Lahore Qalandars in 2019.
The Karachi Kings kept alive their playoff hopes with a seven-run win over the Lahore Qalandars.
The Kings batted first and posted 176-5, with Babar Azam scoring 54 and Martin Guptill belted 43 from 31 balls including three sixes. The Qalandars were right in the chase with contributions from Hohammad Hafeez (36), Tim David (34) and James Faulkner (33) but the chase was strangled by some tight bowling.
Noor Ahmad, the 16-year-old Afghani left-arm spinner, took 2-19 in four overs including the wickets of Hafeez and Ben Dunk (6).
In the opening match, Australian top-order batter Khawaja set the tempo in a brisk 98-run opening stand with Colin Munro (48) off only 59 balls. Munro just missed out on his third half-century in four games.
Islamabad’s ploy to promote power-hitter Asif Ali paid off for the two-time champions as he smacked five sixes and two boundaries in his 43 off 14 balls.
Brandon King added an unbeaten 46 off 22 balls.
Khawaja reached his third T20 century in the last over with a boundary followed by two successive sixes. The Islamabad-born Khawaja hit 13 fours and three sixes.
Peshawar lost Hazratullah Zazai off the first ball, but Akmal and Malik kept them in the hunt. Experienced fast bowler Hasan Ali picked up 3-43 that included the key wicket of Malik in the 17th over.
Sherfane Rutherford (29), captain Wahab Riaz (28) and Umaid Asif (20) played little cameos in the end to narrow the margin of defeat as fast bowler Akif Javed bowled well in the last over, giving away only seven runs.
“We were very pathetic in the field when we won the toss and bowled first knowing they were a bowler short,” Riaz said. “The attitude wasn’t there.”
Islamabad has already qualified for the playoffs, while Peshawar finished the league stage.
Islamabad edges Peshawar in record scoring PSL fixture in Abu Dhabi
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Islamabad edges Peshawar in record scoring PSL fixture in Abu Dhabi
- Islamabad United bettered own previous PSL record of 238-3 against Lahore Qalandars in 2019
- Peshawar won the toss and elected to bat in its last league game
Pakistan saw 73% increase in combat-related deaths in 2025— think tank
- Pakistan reported 3,387 deaths thus year, among them 2,115 militants and 664 security forces personnel, says think tank
- Civilian deaths increased by 24% to 580 in 2025, compared to 468 in 2024, as Pakistan saw 1,063 militant attacks in 2025
ISLAMABAD: Combat-related deaths in Pakistan this year increased by 73%, with both security forces and militants suffering casualties in large numbers, a report published by an Islamabad-based think tank said on Sunday.
As per statistics released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), combat-related deaths in 2025 rose 73% to 3,387, compared with 1,950 in 2024. These deaths included 2,115 militants, 664 security forces personnel, 580 civilians and 28 members of pro-government peace committees (combatants), the think tank said in a press release.
“Militants accounted for about 62% of total combat-related deaths, and their 2,115 fatalities represented the highest annual militant death toll since 2015, when 2,322 militants were killed,” PICSS said.
Compared to last year, militant deaths recorded a steep increase by 122% as the PICSS reported that 951 militants had been killed in 2024.
The think tank, however, said this year was also particularly bloody for Pakistani security forces. PICSS recorded 664 security personnel deaths in 2025, a 26% rise from 528 in 2024, and the highest annual figure since 2011, when 677 security forces personnel lost their lives.
Civilian deaths also increased by 24% to 580 in 2025, compared with 468 in 2024, marking the highest annual civilian toll since 2015, when 642 civilians were killed.
As per the PICSS report, at least 1,063 militant attacks took place in 2025, a 17% increase compared with 908 in 2024 and the highest annual total since 2014, when 1,609 militant attacks were recorded.
The report also noted a 53 percent increase in suicide attacks this year, with 26 such incidents reported in 2025 compared with 17 in 2024.
“PICSS noted an expanding trend in the use of small drones, including quadcopters, with 33 such incidents recorded during 2025, alongside increased use of unmanned aerial vehicles by security forces,” the report said.
The report noted an 83% rise in arrests of suspected militants, with 497 arrested in 2025 compared to 272 in 2024.
This 2025 figure is the highest annual total of suspected militants arrested since 2017, when 1,781 militants were either arrested or laid down their weapons.
“PICSS noted that most violence remained concentrated in Pashtun-majority districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including the tribal districts (erstwhile FATA), and in Balochistan,” it said.
Pakistan has been grappling with a surge in militant attacks in its western provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, both bordering Afghanistan, this year.
Islamabad blames Afghanistan for providing sanctuaries to militants it alleges use Afghan soil to carry out attacks against Pakistan. Kabul denies the charges.
