‘Paisa Wasool final’ – Fans booming as Lahore Qalandars beat Multan Sultans by 1 run to lift their second PSL trophy
Lahore Qalandars beat Multan Sultans by 1 runs to lift the PSL 2023 title.
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Mar 19, 2023 10:56 am
Lahore Qalandars (Source: Twitter)
The final of the Pakistan Super League took place in Lahore at the Gaddafi Stadium between Lahore Qalandars and Multan Sultans. The Qalandars won the toss and chose to bat on a great batting track.
The Qalandars got off to a flying start. Mirza Baig scored a quick-fire 30 off 18 balls with five fours and one six. Fakhar Zaman made 39 off 34 balls with four fours and one six. After 11.2 overs, Qalandars had lost two wickets for 95 runs.
Abdullah Shafique carried on the good work by making a well-crafted 65 off 40 balls with eight fours and two sixes. When he was dismissed by Anwar Ali, three quick wickets followed. The Qalandars were in disarray at 112-5.
Skipper Shaheen Afridi then came to the team’s rescue and belted the Sultan bowlers to all parts. He played an outstanding knock of 44 runs off just 15 balls with two fours and five sixes. Thanks to his knock, Qalandars notched 200 runs in their 20 overs.
Zaman Khan bowled the final over for Qalandars with Sultans needing 13 to win
In the second innings, Usman Khan scored 18 off 12 balls with four fours. He along with Mohammad Rizwan, who scored 34 off 23 balls with five fours, gave Sultans a perfect start. Rilee Rossouw made a good 52 off 32 balls with seven fours and two sixes. Kieron Pollard and Tim David got starts but could not convert those.
The match kept moving at a fast pace. It came down to 13 runs needed off the final over. Kushdil Shah was batting on 19 off 8 balls, while Abbas Afridi was also at the crease at 15 off 4 balls. Zaman Khan bowled the final over. The first ball was a top edge over the infield which yielded 2 runs. Sultans needed 11 off 5. The next ball went for just a single. The third delivery from Zaman was an off-cutter and was a dot ball.
The fourth ball gave two runs. The batters somehow scampered through due to an overthrow. Kushdil was on srtike for the fifth delivery. He hit a four which meant four was needed off the final ball.
Zaman bowled a yorker, Kushdil managed to dig it through wide mid-on. The picked up two runs. Then when they tried to steal a third, David Wiese fired a strong throw to the bowlers end and Shaheen executed the run out. These were absolute scenes and gave rise to wild celebrations.
Let us take a look at the reactions on Twitter-
The whole tournament decided on one Last ball!! Can't get anything better than that!#PSL2023#LahoreQalandars
What a win! Lahore Qalandars are the PSL final 2023 champions! Congratulations to the team on this amazing achievement. Shaheen Shah Afridi and all the players were outstanding. Well done! The best PSL final ever. #LahoreQalandar#PSL2023pic.twitter.com/O1R1KbiJ4l
An incredible end to HBL PSL8, a match befitting of a final & the occasion. Winners all around but special plaudits to @lahoreqalandars & @iShaheenAfridi 👏🏼👏🏼 Second title as Captain & champion effort with bat & ball. Commendations to @iMRizwanPak & @MultanSultans 🙏🏼 @thePSLt20
