PSL 2018, Match 21 Review: Islamabad United enter the top half of the table with a resounding victory

It was a day of surprises in the Pakistan Super League as Islamabad United absolutely stunned the defending champions Peshawar Zalmi. Earlier in the day, Lahore Qalandars pulled off a similar result against table-toppers Multan Sultans. This win took Islamabad to the third position, level on 8 points with Quetta, separated by only net run rate.

Luke Ronchi has been in great nick this tournament and he continued his purple patch on Friday. He got some boundaries in the first few overs and ensured the scoreboard kept running towards a bit total. He scored 6 boundaries in his 17-ball 27, before getting dismissed in the 5th over. His partner JP Duminy was a mere spectator in this partnership.

But as the innings progressed, Duminy took control of the innings and played a gem of a knock. He stitched a 61-run partnership with Hussain Talat and in this partnership, Duminy hit some beautiful shots. The southpaw reached his fifty very soon and was eyeing for a big knock. Much to the disappointment of the United fans, they lost two quick wickets in the 12th and 13th over.

But the game changers of the evening was Asif Ali, who stroked a beautiful 45 off 24 balls. He accumulated four gigantic sixes to go with a couple of boundaries. Duminy once again stepped back and anchored the innings as Asif Ali took charge. The duo added 71 runs in no time and got themselves into a fantastic position.

Eventually, they posted 182 runs on the board losing 4 wickets. JP Duminy remained unbeaten of 73 off 54 balls, which included 6 fours and 4 sixes. Wahab Riaz was the only bowler who got off the mark in the wickets column for the defending champions, registering figures of 3/30 in his 4 overs.

Spinners rattle Zalmi to a moderate total

It was the United spinners who made a huge difference in the game. Experienced English cricketer Samit Patel and Zafar Gohar thwarted Peshawar Zalmi the chances to score freely and also picked up some vital wickets. Both these players were accountable for 7 wickets amongst themselves.

Kamran Akmal and Andre Fletcher smoked a few boundaries in the initial overs. Akmal was dismissed soon after his little cameo and the same was the case with Andre Fletcher. From number 3 to number 7, the only person in that lineup registered two figures and that is not the way one can chase down a total in excess of 180.

Samit Patel and Shadab Khan started the proceeding by picking up the wickets of Dwayne Smith and Khushdil Shah. Then the skipper handed Gohar the ball, who ran riot in the middle overs. The required crept up astronomically and the Zalmi batsmen kept attempting big hits. They failed to connect the shots and the spinners took full control.

They were reduced to 92/8 at one point with Samit Patel picking 4 wickets and Zohar scalping three. But Wahab Riaz played a blinder towards the end and helped his side post a respectable total on board. Umaid Asif contributed to this process as well, which saw Zalmi post 156 runs for the loss of 9 wickets. They handed an easy 26-run victory at a very crucial juncture in the tournament.

Brief Scores

Islamabad United: 182/5 in 20 overs (JP Duminy 73, Asif Ali 45; Wahab Riaz 3/30)

Peshawar Zalmi: 156/9 in 20 overs (Wahab Riaz 33; Samit Patel 4/34, Zafar Gohar 3/25)

Player of the match: JP Duminy