Quetta Gladiators have posted a formidable total of 217 runs after being asked to bat first in their opening match against Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League 2025, held at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
The 10th edition of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) officially kicked off on Thursday with a dazzling opening ceremony in Rawalpindi.
Quetta Gladiators made a flying start in their first match after being put in to bat on a batting-friendly surface at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Openers Saud Shakeel and New Zealand’s Tim Allen laid the foundation with an explosive start, putting up 60 runs in the powerplay.
Tim Allen took a special liking to left-arm leg-spinner Sufiyan Muqeem, smashing three massive sixes in the seventh over before mistiming a shot to long-on and getting dismissed.
Skipper Saud Shakeel maintained the momentum, scoring a solid 59 off 42 balls, including four boundaries and two sixes. His knock featured a standout lap shot off pacer Alzarri Joseph.
South African Rilee Rossouw and Sri Lankan Kusal Mendis added valuable cameos, scoring 21 and 35 respectively, pushing Quetta past the 200-run mark in the penultimate over.
Peshawar bowlers Ali Raza, Sufiyan Muqeem, and Alzarri Joseph managed to take one wicket each, as Quetta concluded their innings at an imposing 216-3 after 20 overs.
Earlier, Peshawar skipper Babar Azam won the toss and opted to bowl first.
Meanwhile, on Friday, defending champions Islamabad United made a statement in their season opener at home, registering a commanding eight-wicket win over Lahore Qalandars.
After restricting Lahore to a modest total of 139—thanks to disciplined bowling by Jason Holder and captain Shadab Khan—New Zealand’s Colin Munro led the chase with a fluent half-century, sealing the win with 14 balls to spare.
Quetta Gladiators:
Saud Shakeel (captain), Finn Allen, Hasan Nawaz, Rilee Rossouw, Kusal Mendis, Shoaib Malik, Faheem Ashraf, Kyle Jamieson, Mohammad Amir, Abrar Ahmed, and Usman Tariq.
Peshawar Zalmi:
Babar Azam (captain), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Hussain Talat, Max Bryant, Mitchell Owen, Alzarri Joseph, Mohammad Ali, Sufiyan Muqeem, and Ali Raza.
