The 16th match of the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2023 between Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United turned out to be a one-sided affair where Qalandars registered a victory by a massive margin of 110 runs.
Opting to bat first at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, Qalandars went on to post an enormous total of 200/7 on the board in their assigned 20 overs. Abdullah Shafique and Sikandar Raza were the chief destroyers, smashing 24-ball 45 and 10-ball 23, respectively.
In response, the United’s batting unit fell like a pack of cards as they got bundled out for just 90 inside 14 overs. Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz took his team off to a flyer, but his dismissal opened the floodgates, and the United could not recover from thereon.
Zaman Khan drew the first blood by removing Gurbaz, but it was Fakhar Zaman‘s sensational effort in the field that made it possible. Fakhar took an unbelievable catch to get rid of the Afghanistan batting sensation. It all happened during the fourth over when Zaman bowled a slower short ball, which deceived Gurbaz for lack of pace as he was through the pull early.
The ball went high off a thick top edge, and Fakhar had a lot of distance to cover running in from a short fine. For a moment, it appeared that the white leather would drop on land, but Fakhar put in a full-stretch dive and took the incredible catch at the edge of his fingertips.
Here is the video:
Absolute screamer from @FakharZamanLive! 😲
There is no stopping him after that effort 🏃🏼#HBLPSL8 | #SabSitarayHumaray | #LQvIU pic.twitter.com/GYLytKw6jt
— PakistanSuperLeague (@thePSLt20) February 27, 2023
Earlier, Fakhar also had a good outing with the bat. He smashed a crucial 36 off 23 at the top to give his side a solid start. The left-handed batter smashed five fours and a six as he accomplished a special milestone. When Fakhar hit Hassan Ali for a six over a short fine leg, he became the batter with the most sixes (90) in PSL history. Fakhar broke the record of Kamran Akmal, who smashed 89 sixes in his PSL career.
