ISLAMABAD: After losing a flurry of wickets at the start of their innings, Peshawar Zalmi bounced back on Wednesday to beat Karachi Kings by 24 runs to clinch another Pakistan Super League (PSL) 8 win in Rawalpindi.
Courtesy of stellar half-centuries by Rovman Powell and Tom Kohler-Cadmore, the “Yellow Storm” managed to put up an imposing total of 197-5 at the end of their 20 overs after batting first.
When the Kings came out to bat, right-arm medium pacer Azmatullah Omarzai dismissed openers Adam Rossington and Tayyab Tahir for scores of 15 and 6, respectively. Zalmi bowlers took two more quick wickets to remove Irfan Khan and Shoaib Malik, two important Kings batters that put Peshawar in the driving seat.
By this time, Zalmi were struggling at 81-4 when another decisive wicket, that of opener Matthew Wade, who scored 53 runs from 41 balls, fell to Mujeeb ur Rehman.
While skipper Imad Wasim continued his impressive run of form by slamming 57 runs off 30 balls which included 10 fours and a six, Ben Cutting, Aamer Yamin and Tabraiz Shamsi were unable to build a solid partnership with him, falling for 15, 8, and 0 respectively.
In the end, Karachi finished at 173-8 after 20 overs. Omarzai proved to be the pick of the Zalmi bowlers, finishing with 3/28 from four overs while Aamir Jamal took 3/43. Rehman not only took two wickets but also bowled economically, finishing with 2/28 after his four overs.
With the latest win, Zalmi climb to the number three spot on the PSL points table with 6 points from three wins in the tournament.
With the latest win, Zalmi climb to the number three spot on the PSL points table with 6 points from three wins in the tournament. The team has also brightened its chances of remaining in the top four to qualify for the league's playoffs.
Earlier, Kings’ bowler Mohammad Amir impressed with the ball, finishing with figures of 4/25 from his four overs.
