The much awaited clash between Babar Azam’s Peshawar Zalmi and Mohammad Rizwan’s Multan Sultans took place on 23rd February, and it was the former who emerged victorious in what was the first last-ball thriller of this season of the PSL.
Babar Azam, skipper of Peshawar Zalmi, who came into this game fresh from two consecutive defeats, won the toss and elected to bat first. Almost everyone chipped in with handy contributions, getting off to starts but failing to convert them into big ones.
Mohammad Rizwan’s Multan Sultans lost the thrilling contest on the last ball failing to chase 180, but only after putting up a good fight. The crowds were entertained by a blistering Dawid Malan half century, and an Iftikhar Ahmed cameo towards the end.
On that note, let us look at 3 reasons why Multan Sultans lost the match against Peshawar Zalmi:
(1)An off day for Abbas Afridi
The leading wicket-taker of the league’s 2023 edition, Abbas Afridi, looked off color as he went for plenty in his quota of four overs.
While none of the other three pacers in the side – Shahnawaz Dahani, David Willey, Mohammad Ali – went for more than 30, Abbas Afridi took a beating as he conceded 48 runs at an economy of 12 runs per over.
After Peshawar Zalmi lost Babar Azam and Haseebullah Khan in quick succession, one could observe a noticeable shift in momentum with Usama Mir and Mohammad Ali keeping it tight. Abbas Afridi, however, let go of all the momentum with a 16-run over.
Things went from bad to worse when he was taken to the cleaners in the last over of the innings. Luke Wood and Naveen-ul-Haq combined to get 17 runs off the 20th over, ending the innings on a high.
For Multan Sultans, that over was possibly the difference between a 170 and 180 target. It must be said that Abbas Afridi was not at his best, bowling too full or becoming way too predictable with his slow off-cutters.
(2)Lack of intent up top and an early Mohammad Rizwan dismissal
Chasing 180 in Multan was never going to be easy for the home side, but with the exceptional home record they have maintained over the last couple of seasons, they would have backed themselves to win this.
However, the Multan Sultans top order failed to keep up with the asking rate. They lost their skipper, Mohammad Rizwan, for a three-ball duck.
This was a massive wicket in the context of the game because Mohammad Rizwan, over the last few years, has proven that he is more than capable of taking control of the game.
At the other end, the pressure started to mount with Yasir Khan failing to rotate strike. Although he did play some crunching pulls to the boundary, he failed to put away way too many deliveries, playing a total of 14 dot balls in his knock.
Despite hitting half a dozen boundaries, his failure to keep the scoreboard ticking built pressure.
Reeza Hendricks did not help a lot either as he seemed to struggle with the same strike rotation issue as Yasir Khan. Multan Sultans could score just 38 in the powerplay, which was not a very good sign with respect to the chase.
The pair of Yasir Khan and Reeza Hendricks stitched up a 45-run partnership, but it came off 35 deliveries. After the already slow start that they had gotten off to, one of the two could and should have played the aggressor.
When Yasir Khan got out, the required run-rate was already over 11. He may have scored 43, but it came at a strike rate of 116, which was never going to suffice in a 180-run chase.
(3)Losing wickets in crucial phases of the game
After an ordinary start, it was Dawid Malan who injected life into the chase. He played a swashbuckling knock of 52 runs off just 25 deliveries, and brought his side right back into the game.
To Multan Sultans’ misfortune, the former number 1 ranked T20I batter fell just when it began to look like his side was well in control of the game.
Dawid Malan was dismissed in the 15th over, but with the way he was hitting the ball, he could have seen his side through if he stayed out there for a little longer.
Moreover, Reeza Hendricks, who had spent enough time at the crease, facing 27 deliveries, also fell in the very next over.
One of the two set batters had to be there at one end, but it just did not happen for the home side. Maybe Dawid Malan, who had scored 25 runs at close to 230 against the Peshawar Zalmi pacers in that innings, could have played Paul Walter out and waited for the pacers to come back on.