Shadab Khan and Agha Salman scored aggressive, undefeated half-centuries to help Islamabad United defeat Lahore Qalandars, the reigning champions, by eight wickets to start their PSL 2024 campaign. After the hosts scored a solid 195/5 batting first, the two put together an undefeated 138-run stand for the third wicket to lead the chase in the dewy conditions.
Pitch report and Toss update
Mostly, Gaddafi Stadium is a batter’s paradise. There is not much assistance for the bowlers on this level surface. But as the game goes on, the surface does help the spinners a little bit, but the pacers have to work their way out in Lahore. So, Islamabad United won the toss and elected to field first as there was a possibility of dew coming in the second half of the innings.
Openers got off Lahore Qalandars to a brisk start
When Qalandars were put to bat, they quickly got off to a fast start as the openers put up a 67-run partnership, spearheaded by an aggressive 36-ball 57 from Sahibzada Farhan. Although it only took Sahibzada Farhan 29 balls to get his half-century, Qalandars’ scoring wasn’t as consistent.
Fakhar Zaman struggled at the other end until Shadab dismissed him on the first ball he faced from the spinner. Shadab was going to have an extremely busy day as they attempted to regain momentum for several overs. When Farhan top-edged Tymal Mills, the slowness became even more obvious, and Islamabad United took the lead.
Rassie van der Dussen’s blazing knock led Qalandars to a competitive score
Rassie van der Dussen, however, made sure that Lahore had plenty on the board all by himself, even though they lost both of the set batters in the span of four overs. In his 41-ball, undefeated knock of 71, the South African smashed three sixes and four boundaries.
He also shared a 73-run partnership for the third wicket with Abdullah Shafique, whose 22-ball, 28-run contribution was highlighted with three sixes. With his unbeaten knock, he attempted to make up for the time Qalandars had lost in the middle overs. David Wiese’s few spectacular runs later in the inning helped push the two-time reigning champions very nearly to 200.
Alex Hales’s cheerful cameo set the tone for Islamabad United
However, with dew, a factor of less than 200 seemed less frightening. Alex Hales set the tone with a brief cameo, and even though Islamabad United lost his opening partner Colin Munro cheaply, they both put up a 41-run partnership. With his 28-ball 36, Alex Hales gave United an early start before departing in the eighth over with Salman Fayyaz’s crisp return catch.
It was the last success Qalandars would enjoy. Salman then joined out with his leader Shadab to resume the pursuit, and they started to form a partnership that helped the Islamabad United reach 88/2 at the halfway mark.
Shadab and Salman put up a match-winning partnership
Qalandars fielded badly, putting Shadab down twice and missing several run-out opportunities, which aided Shadab and Salman. However, in the end, not a single Qalandars bowler was able to stop United from scoring runs. Salman and Shadab both maintained regular boundaries to ensure that the asking rate never increased.
In his undefeated 74 off only 41 deliveries, Shadab blasted five sixes and six fours. His half-century came in 32 deliveries, right before the two reached their century mark. Salman, on the other hand, required only 26 balls to reach the milestone and finished undefeated at 64, while his partner sealed the game with six to 10 balls and eight wickets remaining.
An impressive victory for Islamabad United to begin their campaign of Pakistan Super League this year. In the first match of the season, they thoroughly defeated the reigning champs, and for Shadab Khan and Co., it does not get any better than this.