PSL 2018, Match 23: Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators – Match Predictions

The Gladiators are expected to get out ahead of the Zalmi.

Published - 10 Mar 2018, 12:46 IST | Updated - 10 Mar 2018, 12:46 IST

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As the PSL 3 is moving towards its knockout stage, the competition for top 4 is getting that much intense. Lahore Qalandars are almost out of the contention now and it’s the other 5 teams which are fighting for the 4 spots and none of them are guaranteed to go through yet. Two of the contenders Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators will be on show tonight at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

Peshawar Zalmi had lifted the PSL trophy last season and it’s the Quetta Gladiators whom they had beaten in the final to achieve the glory. And to worsen that would of Quetta, they beat them again earlier this season. So Quetta will be gunning for revenge, while Zalmi will be up for it as well as they have been on the losing side past couple of games and another negative result won’t help them at all.

Probable nature of the pitch

As it’s the second game of the day, it will be played on a pitch where potentially 40 overs would have been bowled already. So there is a chance that the pitch might just slow down a touch if it’s abrasive. However in the last few days, Dubai has come up with absolute belters and if it’s a belter of a pitch again the chances of which are pretty high, 40-overs are not enough to make any sort of a difference to its nature.

However in either of the two scenarios, either it’s a slower one or an evenly paced flat one, the captain’s decision will be to bat first as batting second hasn’t been the easiest thing to do in this tournament.

Playing Combination

Peshawar Zalmi

Darren Sammy returned to Peshawar Zalmi in the yesterday’s game, but that didn’t bring a change in fortunes for them. Sammy’s individual performance was poor too as he couldn’t even get off the mark. However, the game had already been lost till it came to Sammy. First of all, the bowlers let Islamabad score about 20 runs too many and then the top order didn’t fire up front which needs to be the case if a big total has to be successfully chased down.

Wahab Riaz was the pick of the bowlers for Peshawar as he bowled with a fair bit of gas and nailed those Yorkers at will, but he couldn’t get enough support from the other bowlers as each one of them looked off color with the Pakistani superstar Hasan Ali failing to leave a mark as well. Hasan will have to step up to the plate if Peshawar has to make it to the knockouts and the spin duo of Ibtisam Sheikh and Liam Dawson will have to come to the party as well.

Predicted XI: Andre Fletcher, Kamran Akmal (WK), Dwayne Smith, Mohammad Hafeez, Darren Sammy, Khushdil Shah, Liam Dawson, Wahab Riaz, Umaid Asif, Ibtisam Sheikh, Hasan Ali

Quetta Gladiators

Quetta Gladiators are coming into this game after annihilating Karachi Kings. It was a display of an absolute clinic by Quetta as they outplayed and outsmarted Karachi in all three departments of the game. While the batsmen made sure they put a par score on the board, what the bowlers did on a flat pitch was nothing less than commendable.

The young Hasan Khan has been a shining light for Quetta with the ball. He has shown tremendous maturity for someone of his age and has always remained one step ahead of the batsmen. The other spinner Mohammad Nawaz hasn’t been too bad either, while the fast bowling duo of Rahat Ali and Anwar Ali has also been right up to the mark.

The two overseas batting heavyweights that Quetta has at the top of the order in the form of Shane Watson and Kevin Pietersen seem to be absolutely enjoying their time at the moment as they are smashing the white ball all around the park. Both of them registered half-centuries last game and the captain Sarfaraz Ahmed will want them to carry that form into this game too.

Predicted XI: Asad Shafiq, Shane Watson, Sarfaraz Ahmed (C), Rameez Raja, Rilee Rossouw, Mohammad Nawaz, Kevin Pietersen, Hasan Khan, Anwar Ali, Ben Laughlin, Rahat Ali