KARACHI: 2017 champions Peshawar Zalmi beat home team Karachi Kings by 159 runs in match 17 of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 at the National Bank Stadium on Thursday.
Batted first by Kings captain David Warner, the visitors amassed a mammoth total of 246/3 in their 20 overs, courtesy of a mammoth 191-run second-wicket partnership between centurion Gusal Mendis and skipper Babar Azam.
Mendis scored an impressive 109 off 52 balls with 14 fours and 4 sixes, while Babar scored an unbeaten 87 off 51 balls with 10 fours and 2 sixes.
Middle-order batsman Abdul Samad scored an unbeaten 40 off 12 balls, with four sixes and three fours to boost Zalmi’s tally.
Abbas Afridi was the standout bowler for the Kings, taking 2 for 55 in his four overs, with Khushdil Shah picking up a wicket.
Chasing a tough 247-run target, the home team could only muster 87 runs in 16.1 overs to lose by 159 runs, their first in the ongoing PSL 11.
Wicketkeeper batsman Azam Khan remained the top scorer for Kings with a cautious 25 off 27 balls with 3 fours and a six, while fellow middle-order batsmen Saad Baig (14) and Khushdil Shah (10) scored double figures.
Nahid Rana, Sufyan Mukeem and Iftikhar Ahmed jointly led Zalmi’s bowling charge with three wickets each, while Shoribul Islam claimed one wicket.
The 159-run victory lifted Peshawar Zalmi to second place in the PSL 11 standings with seven points from four matches, overtaking Islamabad United thanks to a better net run rate, currently at 2.877, as the three-time champions have taken as many points after five games.
| Teams | Competitions | succeeds | Losses | No results | points | Net flow rate |
| Sultans of Multan | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0.941 |
| Peshawar Salmi | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2.877 |
| Islamabad United | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 2.052 |
| Kings of Karachi | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | -1.639 |
| Lahore Colleagues | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | -0.051 |
| Quetta Gladiators | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | -0.223 |
| Hyderabad Kingsmen | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | -1.558 |
| Rawalpindi’s | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | -1.625 |
Conversely, the Kings are in fourth place with six points after four matches despite suffering the biggest defeat in league history, however, this has significantly reduced their net run ratio, which currently stands at a negative 1.639.
Meanwhile, 2021 champions Multan Sultans remain at the top of the PSL 11 standings with eight points after five games, while holders Lahore Qalandars are fifth with four points from four matches.
The previous edition’s runners-up, Quetta Gladiators, are sixth with two points after four games, while debutants Rawalpindis and Hyderabad Kingsmen are in the bottom two as both teams have lost their four PSL 11 matches each.