Nawaz’s 49 Leads United’s Scoring

LAHORE: In the 23rd match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 10 held at Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday, Faheem Ashraf showcased his all-round prowess, claiming four wickets to restrict Islamabad United to a manageable score.

After being asked to bat, the defending champions posted a total of 157/9 in their 20 overs.

The innings began promisingly for the titleholders, with the new opening pair, Sahibzada Farhan and Kyle Mayers, forging a strong 58-run partnership.

The opening stand concluded in the sixth over when Abrar Ahmed provided the breakthrough for the Gladiators by dismissing Mayers, who scored 22 from 17 balls, including three boundaries and a six.

Faheem then struck twice, removing Colin Munro (nine) and the stand-in captain Salman Ali Agha (zero) in quick succession.

United faced another setback when Sahibzada Farhan was caught out by Gladiators’ captain Saud Shakeel.

Farhan emerged as United’s highest scorer, making 39 off 24 deliveries, hitting two fours and four sixes.

With United struggling at 77/4 in 9.5 overs, Mohammad Nawaz and Andries Gous attempted to stabilize the innings but only managed a 14-run partnership before Faheem struck again, dismissing both Gous and Muhammad Shahzad.

These quick wickets further reduced United to 91/6 in 13 overs.

Subsequently, Haider Ali joined Mohammad Nawaz, and together they formed a 39-run partnership for the seventh wicket.

Nawaz led the scoring during this partnership, while Haider contributed 10 runs from eight balls before being dismissed by Khurram Shahzad in the 18th over.

Nawaz was eventually dismissed by Kyle Jamieson in the final over, having scored a team-high 49 from 34 balls, which included one four and five sixes. He also added a vital 26 runs with Jason Holder for the eighth wicket.

Faheem Ashraf was the leading bowler for the Gladiators, securing four wickets for 25 runs in his three overs. He received support from Khurram, Abrar, Saud, and Jamieson, each taking one wicket.