ISLAMABAD: Peshawar Zalmi lost the first Pakistan Super League (PSL) match on Friday while struggling to pace their innings to outclass Multan Sultans that set an enormous target of 211 runs after losing the toss and batting for the first 20 overs.
Led by Pakistani skipper Babar Azam, Zalmi continued to lose their wickets until the whole team was bundled out for 154 runs in the 18th over.
Azam himself went for cheap after scoring nine runs on eight deliveries. His opening partner Mohammad Haris (40 off 23) made an effort to set the right tone for the innings by hitting four sixes but had to return to the pavilion after getting run out in the eighth over.
Other Zalmi batters, including Saim Ayub (53 off 37) and Rovman Powell (23 off 12), tried to resist the potent bowling onslaught but fell short in their effort.
Earlier, Multan opening batters Shah Masood (20) and Mohammad Rizwan (63 off 42) made a 54-run partnership before Zalmi made the first breakthrough and dismissed Masood in the eighth over.
What followed was a swashbuckling innings by Rilee Rossouw who scored 75 off 36 deliveries, though Sultans lost Rizwan in the 14th over while the score was 116. Other players like David Miller (23 off 14) and Kieron Pollard (15 off 6) also
helped the total of their team by maintaining a magnificent strike rate and continued to stay till the end after Rossouw’s departure in the 19th over.
With the victory against Zalmi at the Multan Cricket Stadium, Sultans have won both their matches in the 8th edition of the PSL tournament which began on February 13.
Zalmi won their first match against Karachi Kings by two runs on Tuesday.
