LAHORE: Aaron Hardy backed up his four-wicket haul with an unbeaten half-century to lead Peshawar Zalmi to a five-wicket victory over Hyderabad Kingsmen in a thrilling Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 final at the Gaddafi Stadium here on Sunday.
The highly-rewarding win helped Zalmi clinch their second PSL title, ending a nine-year wait, as they bagged the prestigious silverware in 2017 under the captaincy of West Indies great Darren Sammy. It marked star batsman Babar’s first major trophy as Assam captain.
Chasing the target of 130 runs, Zalmi eventually smashed the winning runs with five wickets and 28 balls to spare.
However, the former champions had a mixed start for the country as they lost Mohammed Harris (six) and skipper Babar Azam (dug) in the first over bowled by Mohammad Ali.
After both openers departed, all-rounder Aaron Hardy and in-form Gusal Mendis (nine) looked to anchor the run chase with a 26-run partnership that culminated in the latter’s dismissal in the fourth over.
Left-arm pacer Akif Javed dealt another blow to Zalmi’s run chase in the next over when he caught Michael Bracewell (four) behind to bring the total to 40/4.
Hardy then joined forces with Abdul Samad and the duo turned the game around with some smart batting and kept Zalmi within touching distance in an 85-run partnership.
Ali broke the crucial stand in the 15th over, dismissing Samad after a gutsy 48 off 34 balls with 3 fours and 4 sixes.
Hardy, on the other hand, batted till the end and scored an unbeaten 56 off 39 balls with 9 fours.
Among the Kingsmen bowlers, Ali took 3 for 38 in his four overs, while fellow pacers Hunain Shah and Javed claimed one each. Zalmi skipper Babar Azam’s decision to bat first paid off as the 2017 champions posted the openers for 129 in 18 overs.
Left-arm opener Mas Sadaq (11) fell to Mohammed Basit for 16 in the second over as the Kingsmen started their innings.
Following his dismissal, Sime Ayub joined Marnus Labuschagne in the middle and the duo put on 35 off 19 balls to ensure the scoring kept pace before Aaron Hardy caught the captain in the fifth over.
Labuschagne scored 20 off 12 balls with 3 fours and a six as the Kingsmen scored significant runs.
Saim, on the other hand, was involved in a 20-run partnership for the third wicket when he was caught lbw by PSL 11’s leading wicket-taker Sufyan Mukeem in the seventh over.
Usman’s dismissal led to a middle-order collapse as the Kingsmen lost three more wickets, including two run-outs in just eight balls, to slump to 73/6 in 7.5 overs.
Following the collapse, Hasan Khan (12) came out to bat at No.8 and shared a 17-run partnership for the seventh wicket with set batsman Sime until he was sent back by Hardy in the 10th over.
Saim then put on a cautious partnership with Hunain Shah (nine) and Muhammad Ali before eventually being dismissed by Hardy on the first delivery of the 18th over.
The left-handed batsman top-scored for the Kingsmen with 54 off 50 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes.
Hardy struck again in the same over, with Akif Javed (five) rounding off Zalmi’s dominance.
Hardy was the best bowler for Zalmi in the PSL 11 final, returning sensational figures of 4/27 from his four overs, followed by Nahid Rana’s two-wicket haul, while Mukeem and Basit chipped in with a scalp each.