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Peshawar Zalmi hold nerve in thriller to open their account

The Peshawar Zalmi players heave a sigh of relief after holding on in a thriller PSL

Peshawar Zalmi 179 for 8 (Haseebullah 37, Ali 2-23, Willey 2-28, Mir 2-36) beat Multan Sultans 174 (Malan 52, Yasir 43, Yakoob 3-43) by five runs

Peshawar Zalmi's first win of the season came at the expense of table-toppers Multan Sultans in a nailbiter on Friday.

Peshawar totalled 179-8 after they won the toss, and Sultans were all out for 174. Sultans still lead the six-team table on net run rate after their first home loss in four matches.

Needing 22 off the final over, Sultans' Iftikhar Ahmed cracked two boundaries and a big six off Naveen-ul-Haq, reducing the target to six off the last two balls. The Afghan fast bowler, playing his first PSL game of the season, kept his cool and had Iftikhar caught behind after a video referral, then used the last ball to knock over the last man Shahnawaz Dahani.

Sultans' run chase was powered by Dawid Malan, who made a blistering 52 off 25 balls. Reeza Hendricks, with 28 off 27, played an anchor role in a 70-run stand with Malan, who smashed three sixes and three fours.

The batters fell in quick succession, and leg-spinner Arif Yaqoob undermined Sultans further when he took three wickets in an eventful 17th over. Usama Mir hit Yaqoob for two successive sixes, and David Willey was dismissed by a terrific catch on the boundary by substitute fielder Dan Mousley.

Earlier, Peshawar were launched by Haseebullah Khan's quickfire 37 off 18 balls and Babar Azam's 31. The death overs were also vital as Rovman Powell's 23 off 11 and Luke Wood's 17 off 12 lifted Peshawar.

Sultans 2nd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st7Mohammad RizwanYasir Khan
2nd45RR HendricksYasir Khan
3rd70DJ MalanRR Hendricks
4th7RR HendricksKhushdil Shah
5th3Iftikhar AhmedKhushdil Shah
6th12Iftikhar AhmedUsama Mir
7th0DJ WilleyIftikhar Ahmed
8th12Iftikhar AhmedAbbas Afridi
9th18Iftikhar AhmedMohammad Ali
10th0Mohammad AliShahnawaz Dahani

Pakistan Super League

TeamMWLPTNRR
MS1073141.15
PZ1063130.147
IU1054110.224
QG105411-0.921
KK10468-0.192
LQ10183-0.554