Pakistan Super League 2024: Pakistan's star batsman Babar Azam has seen his four-game winning streak come to an end as his side Peshawar Zalmi lost to Quetta Gladiators in Match 2 of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2024 on Sunday, February 18, at the iconic Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The Peshawar Zalmi opener has been on a scintillating run with bat as he continues to ponder runs and pile up greater numbers in the shortest format of the sport.
His recent antics with Rangpur Riders in Bangladesh Premier League 2024 have seen the side top the table in the league stage and qualify for the knockouts. However, due to commitments to Peshawar Zalmi, Babar Azam won't be a part of the Bangladesh Premier League 2024 and has now left the league as the side's top scorer for now with 251 runs, with Nurul Hasan the nearest challenger with 203 runs.
Peshawar Zalmi Vs Quetta Gladiators Match 2 - Match Report
Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators clashed in the second match of the recently-presumed Pakistan Super League 2024. Electing to bowl first, the decision seemed pretty surprising and Peshawar did no justice to their decision as Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel ran riot by putting on a 157-run stand for the first wicket, which helped the Gladiators pile a score of 206/5 in their 20 overs.
Peshawar Zalmi had never chased a target of 205+ in their history and opener Saim Ayub and Babar Azam had a huge task at their disposal to rewrite history and mark their arrival in style, as the franchise looks to better their previous playoff finish last season. The duo went off to a flyer but with the wicket of Saim Ayub via a runout on the team score of 91 inside 8.4 overs, Zalmi never recovered and slow starts and quick wickets led the side struggle big time.
Mohammad Amir bowled an excellent penultimate over to get rid of Rovman Powell and the overall bowling attack of Quetta delivered a 16 run for the side as they start their PSL 2024 with a confidence-boosting win.