The 13th match of PSL 2022 will see Peshawar Zalmi square off against defending champions Multan Sultans at the National Stadium in Karachi.
Having lost consecutive fixtures to Islamabad United and Lahore Qalandars respectively, Peshawar pulled their fledgling campaign back on track on Friday as they edged out Babar Azam's Karachi by 9 runs.
Hazratullah Zazai's 27-ball 41 at the top of the order and veteran middle-order batter Shoaib Malik's unbeaten 28-ball 52 lifted Zalmi to a total of 173/4.
Azam returned to form with an unbeaten 63-ball 90 but his lack of intent for major part of the knock coupled with lack of any significant contribution from other batsmen except Ian Cockbain (31 off 19) ensured that Zalmi got home by 9 runs.
Malik claimed the important wicket of Sharjeel Khan for a golden duck but the spearhead of the attack proved to be Mohamamd Umar, who finished with figures of 3/22 in 4 overs.
Peshawar would now aim to make it two-in-two on Saturday but they will have to play out of their skins to make that happen as they will be against table-topper and the only unbeaten side in the competition- Multan Sultans.
The Mohammad Rizwan-led defending champions have looked the most complete side in PSL 2022 thus far. They were the first team to break the pattern of sides' failing to defend targets. In fact, they did it in back-to-back games.
Their batting unit is easily the best in the competition with almost everyone chipping in blazing form. While Shan Masood and Rizwan have consistently given firing starts, they have been backed by the likes of Rilee Rossow and Tim David.
As far as bowling is concerned, David Willey and Khushdil Shah have been the picks while the ever-dependable Imran Tahir has also chipped in at different stages.
Match Details - Peshawar Zalmi vs Multan Sultans, PSL 2022
Date: 5th February 2022
Time: 08:00 PM IST
Venue: National Stadium, Karachi
Broadcast: Sony Six, Sony Six HD, SonyLiV app and website
Pitch Report
The pitch in Karachi continues to be a safe haven for batters with the last three first-innings scores being 5/217, 4/199, 4/229 & 173/4. However, teams have started to defend totals successfully, with the last five games being won by the side batting first. Both sides will look to bat the opposition out of the game if they win the toss.
Squads:
Peshawar Zalmi:
Wahab Riaz (c), Tom Kohler-Cadmore (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Yasir Khan, Haider Ali, Shoaib Malik (c), Hussain Talat, Ben Cutting, Sohail Khan, Patrick Brown, Sameen Gul, Usman Qadir, Kamran Akmal (wk), Hazratullah Zazai, Arshad Iqbal, Salman Irshad, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Umar, Sirajuddin.
Multan Sultans:
Mohammad Rizwan (C & WK), Tim David, Shan Masood, Rilee Rossouw, Johnson Charles, Imran Tahir, Sohaib Maqsood, Khushdil Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Rumman Raees, Asif Afridi, Anwar Ali, Imran Khan Snr, Amir Azmat, Blessing Muzarabani, Ihsanullah, David Willey, Rizwan Hussain
Probable Playing XI:
Peshawar Zalmi:
Hazratullah Zazai, Kamran Akmal (WK), Haider Ali, Hussain Talat, Shoaib Malik, Sherfane Rutherford, Ben Cutting, Wahab Riaz (c), Usman Qadir, Mohammad Umar, Salman Irshad
Multan Sultans:
Shan Masood, Mohammad Rizwan (C & WK), Sohaib Maqsood, Rilee Rossouw, Tim David, Khushdil Shah, David Willey, Anwar Ali, Imran Tahir, Abbas Afridi, Rumman Raees
CE Fantasy XI:
Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Shan Masood (C), Hazratullah Zazai, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik (WK), Rilee Rossouw, Tim David, Khushdil Shah, Usman Qadir, Mohammad Umar, Imran Tahir
Captain: Shan Masood
Vice captain: Shoaib Malik