PSL qualifier preview: United and Gladiators meet for the third time

LAHORE: With the Pakistan Super League (PSL) playoffs kicking off tomorrow, May 21, it’s time to take a look back at how the two teams clashing in the first qualifier ended up at the top of the table.

United hang on

The PSL’s defending champions had a dominant start to the season, winning their first five matches. Sahibzada Farhan dominated with the bat, becoming the seasons top run scorer, while Jason Holder spearheaded United’s bowling attack, taking a total of 15 wickets.

However, Islamabad’s season took a turn for the worse when they faced the Lahore Qalandars for the second time on April 30. Apart from Andries Gous and Salman Agha, no one wearing red could seem to find their rhythm with the bat, leading to Islamabad suffering their first defeat when they lost their last wicket with 88 runs still left to chase. United would be handed their second defeat days later against the Peshawar Zalmi as their poor batting form endured. Islamabad only managed to put 143 runs on the board, which Peshawar chased in just 16.4 overs.

Back to back losses against Quetta Gladiators would put United in an even more dire situation. Despite Quetta’s Faheem Ashraf dominating Islamabad in the first outing, taking four wickets, the Gladiators only won by two wickets with one ball remaining. However, Quetta dominated the second meeting, setting a target of 263 runs as Rilee Rossouw and Hasan Nawaz both scored centuries, to eventually win by 109 runs.

At this point, United were just hanging on to third place with 10 points. With the Qalandars just one point behind, and the Zalmi only needing to win one of their two games to reach ten points themselves, there was a chance for Untied to fall to fifth on net run rate. But, United managed to find their winning form again, beating the Kings in the final game of the regular season thanks to an incredible 153 run opening partnership between Farhan and Alex Hales that led Islamabad to a total of 251. United stole second place off net run rate, securing their place in the qualifier.

Also read: The PSL so far: United dominance, Sultans’ poor form

Gladiators finish on top

The Gladiators had an unsuspecting start to the season, winning their first game, but losing their next two. Early signs of great batting in Saud Shakeel, Finn Allen, and Hasan Nawaz, as well as some fantastic bowling from Abrar Ahmed and Faheem Ashraf, were overshadowed by United’s dominance.

However, that didn’t stop the Gladiators from finishing on the top of the table with seven wins to their name. Hasan finished fifth in most runs scored in the league, with 317, his top score of 100 coming in their second outing against United. He recorded two half centuries as well, including an unbeaten 67 that led the Gladiators to their second victory over Multan in their last game of the season. Hasan also had an unbeaten 64 against United in their first meeting.

Abrar and Faheem both had incredible bowling performances during the season, with the former being tied for second in wickets taken with 15, while the latter was just behind in third with 14. Abrar’s standout game came in Quetta’s first of the season, as he took four wickets to help hold Peshawar to just 136 runs, allowing the Gladiators to win by 80. Faheem was the only bowler in the league to take five wickets in a game, which he did against the Zalmi, as he led Quetta to a 64-run victory after holding Zalmi down to just 114 runs. A few days later, Faheem would impress again by taking four wickets in Quetta’s first victory against Islamabad.

Third times the charm

United have already lost twice to Quetta in their two back to back meetings in the first week of May. Now, Islamabad have a chance at redemption as they face Gladiators for the third time in the first qualifier tomorrow. Sahibzada will need to put up some runs early to set the tone, trying his best to avoid the traps that Abrar sets with his spin bowling. Similarly, Hasan will be looking to put on another great knock, as he tries to withstand Holder’s fast bowling.

The winner will secure their ticket to the final, while the loser will get a second chance in the second qualifier against the winner of the eliminator.

Also read: PSL 10: Islamabad United crush Karachi Kings by 79 runs