Dubai: Quetta Gladiators pulled off a thrilling eight-run victory over Lahore Qalandars in the second match of the HBL Pakistan Super League at the Dubai International stadium. Lahore Qalandars, despite restricting Quetta to a moderate 136 for 9, saw Quetta spinners Zulfiqar Babar, Mohammad Nawaz and Hasan Khan get two wickets each and bowl out Lahore for 128 runs in 18.4 overs. Rilee Rossouw sparkled for Quetta with an elegant 60 runs on a slow wicket where runs were hard to get. Lahore won the toss and elected to field. Quetta did not get a good start as Ahmad Shehzad fell in the third over of the match to Sohail Tanvir’s delivery. Trying to play down to fine leg he gloved the ball to the wicketkeeper for five.
Mohammad Irfan, a new pacer discovered by Lahore team director Aqib Javed, made Kevin Pietersen play on to his wicket for three. In the 10th over, West Indies off spinner Sunil Narine struck twice. With the first ball he clean bowled opener Asad Shafiq for 29 while trying to paddle the ball down the leg side. In the same over he took the price wicket of their skipper Sarfraz Ahmad. Attempting to play a cut shot, Sarfraz played the ball on to his wicket to be out for 1.
Lahore went for the kill with Quetta reeling at 54 for 4 in ten overs. Nawaz on three was brilliantly run out by Yasir Shah through a direct hit. Rossouw hit the first six of the match through a lofted drive over cover off Grant Elliot but Thisara Perera played Yasir Shah into the hands of Bilawal Bhatti at long off.
Rossouw scored a boundary off Shah in the 15th over and also hit Tanvir for two successive boundaries to steer Quetta past the 100 run mark. Pakistan’s Under-19 cricketer Hasan Shah hit Yasir Shah for a six and a boundary in the 17th over, while Rossouw pulled Irfan for his second six. Attempting another bit hit, Hasan fell for 16, caught by Roy at deep backward square leg. Rossouw’s fine knock ended when he was well caught by Umar Akmal at long on off Irfan for 60.
Chasing a run rate of 6.80 wasn’t easy on a slow wicket. Opener Jason Roy began by reverse sweeping the second ball of the innings from Zulfiqar Babar for a boundary and the next ball he lifted over mid-on for a six. He also cracked two successive boundaries off Tymal Mills — the first was elegantly placed past slips and another hammered through midwicket. The last ball too Roy hit through the cover.
Babar ended Roy’s 14 ball knock of 27 with five boundaries and a six when the batsmen tried to paddle and missed.
Opener Brendon McCullum, who played second fiddle when Roy was in flow, soon began to hit. He cracked a six off Zulfiqar but fell for 20 to the same bowler. He got caught by Perera at midwicket for 20. Next man Umar Akmal lasted only four balls before hitting Anwar Ali to Perera at mid-off for a duck. When left-arm spinner Hasan Shah trapped Mohammad Rizwan leg before for five and Fakar Zaman too got run out for 11, half the Lahore side were back in the pavilion for 68. From the last ten overs Lahore needed 69 runs.
Grant Elliot on eight got dropped by Shehzad off Perera at long-on but Sohail Tanvir allowed himself to be bowled by Nawaz while attempting to paddle. Sunil Narine and Eillot put on 40 runs for the seventh wicket to pull their team close to the target before Nawaz dismissed Elliot for 26. Mills trapped Narine leg before for 26.
Lahore needed 12 runs off the last 12 balls with one wicket in hand and Hasan Khan had last man Yasir Shah caught and bowled for one.
