PSL final: Shaheen Afridi promotes himself ahead of David Wiese in batting order to spring surprise

Shaheen Afridi's Lahore Qalandars reigned supreme on Mohammad Rizwan's Multan Sultans on Sunday, March 18 as they clinched a cliffhanger by the barest of margins (one run) to win the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League.

While Shaheen was at his supreme best with the ball in hand as he bagged a crucial four-for at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium to help his side win the second consecutive title, it was his stunning cameo with the willow that helped Qalandars to put up a majestic total on the board in the first place.

As soon as Sikandar Raza got dismissed on the first ball of the 15th over off Khushdil Shah, Shaheen was seen charging on to the field and it also surprised his teammate David Wiese who was originally due to bat at the no. seven slot. Shaheen was seen going ahead of Wiese and scored 44 runs of just 15 balls.

Auni Akhter@AuniAkhter

David Wiese was due to come in at 7 and Shaheen was like "hold my chai." #MSvLQ #PSLFinal

09:45 PM · Mar 18, 2023

1K121

Shaheen provided the much-needed impetus to Qalandars' batting towards the fag end of the innings. His quick blitz saw him score two fours and five sixes in his innings at a jaw-dropping strike rate of 293.33. As soon as Sikandar Raza perished in an attempt to up the ante, Wiese was seen walking towards the field of play but Shaheen was seen rapidly descending the stairs of the changing room to walk into bat.

The Qalandars' pacer gave a nod to Wiese as if to suggest that he (Shaheen) himself was going to bat ahead of him (Wiese).

Wiese also got the opportunity to bat but could only face two deliveries and scored two runs. Shaheen capitalised on the start provided by his top-order batters like Mirza Baig, Fakhar Zaman and Abdullah Shafique and took the Sultans' bowling attack to task.

The Qalandars' skipper was also brilliant with the ball in hand as he picked up a match-winning four-wicket haul to dismantle the Sultans' batting order and helped his team grab hold of their second consecutive PSL title. Shaheen was awarded the Player of the Match for his heroic display on the field.

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