Lahore, 17 February 2024- Shadab Khan scored 74 runs without being dismissed in a cricket match. He partnered with Salman Ali Agha, who scored 64 runs without being dismissed as well. Together, they made a partnership of 138 runs for the third wicket. This helped Islamabad United win the match against Lahore Qalandars by eight wickets in the first game of the HBL PSL 9. The match took place at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Saturday night.
In their attempt to reach the target of 196 runs, Islamabad United had a strong beginning, scoring 50 runs in the initial overs. They only lost one player, Colin Munro, who scored 5 runs in 11 balls with one four. In the following over, the team’s captain, Shadab, entered the game at number three and hit two boundaries against Haris Rauf, maintaining a good flow of runs.
By the middle of the game, Islamabad United had reached a score of 88 for two, meaning they needed 108 more runs to win in the remaining 10 overs. In the 11th over of their innings, the United batsmen scored 14 runs from Haris Rauf’s second over.
Needing 44 runs from five overs, Islamabad United performed well in the 16th over, scoring 12 runs. The following over was even better, with Shadab hitting two maximums off Haris, resulting in 14 runs. Then, in the 18th over, Islamabad’s Salman hit a four and a six off captain Shaheen Shah Afridi, gathering 15 runs in total for the team.
With just three runs needed in the last two overs, Shadab sealed the victory for Islamabad United by hitting a six-over long-on. This ensured that United won the game with 10 balls remaining.
Shadab ended the game with an unbeaten score of 74 runs from 41 balls. He hit six fours and five sixes during his innings. Meanwhile, Salman scored 64 runs without being dismissed, facing 31 balls. He struck seven fours and three sixes in his innings.
Before Islamabad United’s innings, Lahore Qalandars batted first. Their opening pair, Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman started strongly by scoring 66 runs in the initial overs. However, their partnership was ended by Shadab Khan, who dismissed Fakhar Zaman for 13 runs off 13 balls, including one four. This happened in the seventh over, with Lahore’s score at 67 runs.
After Fakhar Zaman’s dismissal, Sahibzada Farhan continued batting alongside Rassie van der Dussen. However, they only managed to add 22 runs to the team’s total before Sahibzada got out. Sahibzada scored 57 runs from 36 balls, including eight fours and one six. He was dismissed by left-arm pacer Tymal Mills in the 11th over.
Abdullah Shafique entered the game at number four and hit three big sixes during his time at the crease. He scored 28 runs from 22 balls in total.
The reason Lahore Qalandars reached a score of 195 for five in their 20 overs was mainly because of Rassie van der Dussen’s outstanding innings. He remained unbeaten on 71 runs from 41 balls, hitting four fours and three sixes. Van der Dussen, who played for United in the previous edition of HBL PSL, achieved his first-ever half-century in the HBL PSL today, doing so in just 31 balls.
For Islamabad United, Naseem Shah made his return to competitive cricket after nearly six months. He took one wicket, conceding 36 runs in his four overs. Shadab Khan, who also returned from injury, gave away 24 runs and took one wicket in his four overs. Tymal Mills proved to be the most successful bowler for United, claiming two wickets while conceding 45 runs in his four overs.
Lahore Qalandars scored 195 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in their 20 overs. Rassie van der Dussen remained unbeaten with 71 runs, Sahibzada Farhan contributed 57 runs, and Abdullah Shafique scored 28 runs. Tymal Mills took 2 wickets for 45 runs, while Shadab Khan claimed 1 wicket for 24 runs.
Islamabad United reached a total of 200 runs for the loss of 2 wickets in 18.2 overs. Shadab Khan remained unbeaten with 74 runs, Salman Ali Agha also remained unbeaten with 64 runs, and Alex Hales scored 36 runs. Salman Fayyaz took 1 wicket for 23 runs.
Shadab Khan from Islamabad United was named the Player of the Match.
Tomorrow’s matches are as follows
- Quetta Gladiators vs Peshawar Zalmi at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, starting at 2:00 PM.
- Multan Sultans vs Karachi Kings at Multan Cricket Stadium, starting at 7:00 PM.
