Lahore Qalandars 195 for 5 (van der Dussen 71*, Farhan 57) lost to
Islamabad United 200 for 2 (Shadab 74*, Salman 64*) by eight wickets. Rassie
van der Dussen's undefeated 41-ball 71 was insufficient to put up a total that
United could not chase down.
On the first night of the PSL 2024, Islamabad United defeated the reigning
champion Lahore Qalandars with the assistance of an undefeated 138-run
partnership between Shadab Khan and Agha Salman. United chose to field, and
despite past performance, they easily reached the challenging target of 196,
reaching it with 10 balls remaining.
Their cause was aided by Qalandars' careless fielding, as they twice dismissed Shadab and dropped multiple run-out chances. However, in the end, not a single Qalandars bowler was able to stop United from scoring runs. Alex Hales set the tone early on with a little cameo, and it was the last triumph Qalandars would experience until Salman Fayyaz got rid of him with a crisp return catch.
What came next was Shadab at the top of his game with the bat, perfectly timing and placing pace and spin. Salman, who finished the match with an undefeated 64 off 31, provided him with even more explosive support as he finished with an undefeated 74 off 41. It was fitting, therefore, that the captain of United closed the game by hitting Fayyaz squarely over his head for a massive six, raising United's total to 200.
After a spectacular opening ceremony, the PSL began, and Qalandars appeared to be off to a strong start as well. Although it only took Sahibzada Farhan 29 balls to get his half-century, Qalandars' scoring wasn't as consistent. Before Shadab dismissed him off the first ball he faced off the spinner, Fakhar Zaman labored at the other end. Shadab was going to have an extremely busy day as they attempted to regain momentum for several overs. United took the lead when Farhan overtook Tymal Mills, causing an even more noticeable slowing.
Rassie van der Dussen's skill was needed to turn the ship around with a masterful late-overs knock. With an unbeaten 41-ball 71, he attempted to make up for the time Qalandars had lost in the middle overs. David Wiese's few spectacular runs later in the innings helped push the two-time reigning champions very almost to 200. But in the end, it wasn't nearly enough given United's current state of mind.
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