Karachi set for historic clash as Islamabad United take on Peshawar Zalmi in PSL 2018 final

Waseem Ahmed 20:34 24/03/2018
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  • Darren Sammy and Misbah-ul-Haq pose with the PSL trophy. (Image courtesy: @thePSLT20/Twitter)

    Peshawar Zalmi and Islamabad United lock horns in the final of the third edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) on Sunday, in what will be the biggest game the city of Karachi has hosted in nine years.

    Having not hosted an international match since a Test against Sri Lanka in their ill-fated tour of 2009, Karachi will be the stage for Sunday’s showdown.

    Islamabad were the undisputed leaders in the league stages in UAE, finishing on top of the six-team bunch with 14 points, winning seven out of their 10 matches.

    Peshawar on the other hand, come into the final on the back of two impressive victories in the Eliminators after finishing third in the league stages with 10 points.

    Both outfits will be looking for their second PSL title with Islamabad having won the inaugural edition while Peshawar won it last year in front of Pakistan fans at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Having won four of their last five matches each, both sides come into the final with their tails up.

    30-SECOND ANALYSIS

    PESHAWAR ZALMI

    For the Darren Sammy led Peshawar outfit, Kamran Akmal has led the way with the bat and is the tournament’s highest scorer with 424 runs. Veterans Mohammad Hafeez (290) and Dwayne Smith (252) have both chipped in with vital contributions over the course of the league.

    Leading an excellent bowling attack, Pakistan pacer Wahab Riaz has been brilliant with 16 wickets so far. Apart from Riaz, Hasan Ali (10), Umaid Asif (12) and Liam Dawson (8) have all played their part in propping up the bowling attack.

    ISLAMABAD UNITED

    Like Peshawar, Islamabad have been good all-round with not particular weak link. Their strength lies in their batting, where Luke Ronchi (383) and JP Duminy (249) has been the biggest contributors with the bat.

    The real pick for the league leaders has been all-rounder Faheem Ashraf who is the leading wicket-taker in the tournament with 17 scalps. He has made some important contributions with the bat too, most notably his unbeaten 54 against Sunday’s opponents earlier in the UAE.

    Ashraf has received able support from Mohammad Sami (12) and Samit Patel (11). While young left-spinner Shadab Khan has been extremely economical (6.57), he has managed only six wickets in the tournament.

    TEAM NEWS

    PESHAWAR ZALMI

    Peshawar Zalmi have brought their full strength of overseas players to the Pakistan leg of the PSL though Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal has been ruled out of Sunday’s final due to a knee-injury.

    ISLAMABAD UNITED

    For Islamabad, England batsman Alex Hales has not travelled to Pakistan due to security concerns while skipper Misbah-ul-Haq has been injured since the end of the league stages and will miss Sunday’s final too.

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