LAHORE: Peshawar Zalmi won the toss and chose to bowl first against Quetta Gladiators in the 17th match of the Pakistan Super League 10th edition (PSL X) at Qaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Sunday.
Zalmi have lost three of their four matches this season and secured their only win over Multan Sultans. All eyes have been on Zalmi skipper Babar Azam, who has been consistently performing in PSL X, in Sunday’s encounter against Gladiators.
Zalmi said it was “time to shine” in a post on Instagram as their skipper said they were going in with a clear approach.
“Our approach is clear — smart cricket, sharp mindset, and full fight,” Azam said after winning the toss. “Every moment, every move, with one goal in mind.”
Gladiators, on the other hand, draw confidence from their solid 80-run win over Zalmi in the PSL X opener, which gives them a psychological edge in Sunday’s encounter.
However, the Saud Shakeel-led side has failed to maintain consistency since their win against Zalmi and secured a narrow victory against Karachi Kings by defending a modest total of 142.
Fans anticipated a tough battle between Gladiators’ superior bowling line-up and Zalmi’s hard-hitting batsmen.
SQUADS
Peshawar Zalmi: Babar Azam (c), Saim Ayub, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Mohammad Haris, George Linde, Mohammad Ali, Hussain Talat, Nahid Rana, Abdul Samad, Arif Yaqoob, Mehran Mumtaz, Sufiyan Muqeem, Najibullah Zadran, Ali Raza, Maaz Sadaqat, Mitchell Owen, Ahmed Daniyal, Alzarri Joseph, Ihsanullah
Quetta Gladiators: Saud Shakeel (c) Finn Allen, Faheem Ashraf, Mark Chapman, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Amir, Rilee Rossouw, Akeal Hossein, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Khawaja Nafay, Usman Tariq, Haseebullah Khan, Khurram Shahzad, Kyle Jamieson, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Zeeshan, Danish Aziz, Kusal Mendis and Sean Abbott
PSL X: Peshawar Zalmi lock horns with Quetta Gladiators at Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium
https://arab.news/mupc2
PSL X: Peshawar Zalmi lock horns with Quetta Gladiators at Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium
- Zalmi have lost three of their four matches this season and secured their only win over Multan Sultans
- Gladiators, on the other hand, draw confidence from their solid 80-run win over Zalmi in PSL X opener
Liverpool’s Wirtz will score many more after Wolves winner, says Slot
- Liverpool signed Florian Wirtz in June for a reported fee of £100 million, with a further £16 million in potential bonuses
- The 22-year-old had failed to find the net in more than 20 appearances for Liverpool before scoring the winner in Saturday’s match
Florian Wirtz is beginning to find his feet at Liverpool and will keep getting better, manager Arne Slot said after the German midfielder scored his first goal for the Premier League champions in their 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Liverpool signed Wirtz in June for a reported fee of 100 million pounds ($135 million), with a further 16 million pounds in potential bonuses.
The 22-year-old had failed to find the net in more than 20 appearances for Liverpool before scoring the winner in Saturday’s match, and Slot said his performances had been undervalued due to football’s obsession with statistics.
“I’m quite sure it was a relief for him. This I could see after his reaction after he scored the goal – and the same I saw with his teammates. I think they were really happy for him,” Slot told reporters.
“In football – rightly so, maybe – we mainly get judged on results, and individuals mainly get judged on goals and assists. Sometimes we tend to forget what else there is to do during a game.”
The Dutch manager called on Wirtz to keep going after ending his drought.
“He’s had multiple good games for us but I also feel he gets better and better every single game he is playing for us. He gets fitter and fitter and was getting closer and closer to his first goal,” he added.
“Then it was not a surprise to me that he scored one today, but he would probably be the first one to understand that one goal is not enough.
“He will score many more goals for us than only this one, but I also liked his performance during large parts of the game today. I think he was special in a lot of moments.”
Liverpool, fourth in the standings, next host 16th-placed Leeds United in a league match on January 1.
