LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Rassie van der Dussen’s 50-ball century went in vain against Peshawar Zalmi as two-time defending champion Lahore Qalandars lost their fifth straight game in Pakistan Super League cricket on Sunday.
The South African finished unbeaten on a swashbuckling 104 off 52 balls for Lahore in a high-scoring thriller. It wasn’t quite enough as Peshawar won by eight runs with Lahore chasing for the first time this season.
Earlier, table-topping Multan Sultans rounded off their home leg by handing Quetta Gladiators a first defeat.
Multan put up 180-4 on the back of half-centuries by Reeza Hendricks (72) and captain Mohammad Rizwan (51). Then fast bowlers Mohammad Ali and David Willey took three wickets each as Quetta was restricted to 167-9 and lost by 13 runs.
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Ali is the leading wicket-taker in the tournament with 13.
He and Willey struck in the powerplay before Quetta captain Rilee Rossouw, with 30, and Pakistan batting sensation Khawaja Nafay, 36, dragged them back into the game with a 62-run stand.
Rossouw fell to a brilliant low catch by Khushdil Shah in the covers and Nafay was caught off a slower Ali delivery as Quetta’s chase slumped to 124-5 in the 15th over.
Earlier, Multan was sent in to bat and Hendricks scored his third half-century in five games.
He shared 79 runs with Rizwan for the second wicket and 77 with Tayyab Tahir, who added 35 off 22 in his first game of the season after Dawid Malan fell ill.
Hendricks’ 47-ball knock featured four sixes and seven fours, and ended in the last over when he was caught in the deep.
LAHORE REMAINS WINLESS
Van der Dussen kept Lahore’s hopes alive in pursuit of Peshawar’s formidable total of 211-4 by hitting six sixes and seven fours but the home team was restricted to 203-6.
Van der Dussen registered his first century in this PSL edition by pulling Luke Wood for a six over mid-wicket in the penultimate over. He attacked Peshawar pace with Naveen-ul-Haq (2-50) and Wood (1-46) returning expensive figures.
Needing 18 off the final over, Van der Dussen got the strike for only one ball as Paul Walter kept his nerve and conceded just three runs off the first five balls before Carlos Brathwaite hit a six off the final ball in a losing cause.
In the absence of injured Haris Rauf, Peshawar’s opening pair of Saim Ayub (88) and captain Babar Azam (48) had raised 136 off 86 balls after Lahore won the toss.
Rovman Powell smashed 46 off 20 and hammered young fast bowler Mohammad Imran for 22 in one over. Peshawar post this season’s highest total in the PSL.
Lahore captain Shaheen Shah Afridi chipped in with three late wickets for 33 runs, but got little assistance from Zaman Khan, who ended up with 0-48.
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