The Pakistan Super League 2021 season is coming to its grand close and Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi will clash in the penultimate match of the season at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi with an aim of qualifying for the big finale.
The winner of the Eliminator 2 will clash with Multan Sultans in the final of the biggest domestic tournament in the Pakistan cricket calendar.
Route to Eliminator 2
Islamabad United lost to Multan Sultans by 31 runs in the PSL 2021 Qualifier after topping the league stage with an impressive 16 points gathered courtesy of 8 wins in 10 matches.
In the qualifier against the Sultans, the United skipper Shadab Khan lost the toss on a batting-friendly pitch but his team fought back strongly picking three crucial wickets in the first eight overs. Akif Javed dismissed Sultans skipper Mohammad Rizwan on a duck before Shadab Khan trapped the dangerous duo of Shan Masood and Rilee Russow LBW to send them back to the pavilion in the same over.
Then, a 63-run partnership ensued between Sohaib Maqsood and Johnson Charles which powered Multan Sultans to a respectable score of 122. Faheem Ashraf dismissed both batsmen in consecutive overs to trouble the Sultans squad.
A blitz from Khushdil Shah in the penultimate over saw the middle-order batsman smash four sixes and a boundary helping the Sultans post a total of 180 on the scoreboard.
Chasing 181, the Islamabad United batting order collapsed like a pack of ends from one end with Usman Khawaja scoring 70 runs from 40 balls before becoming the sixth victim of the Multan bowling line-up and the Johan Botha-coaches side went down breaking their 5-match winning streak.
In the PSL 2021 Elminiator 1, Peshawar Zalmi beat Karachi Kings by 5 wickets to make their place in the Eliminator 2 and stand a chance to qualify for the final of the sixth edition of the league.
After being asked to bat first, Karachi Kings put 175 on the scoreboard courtesy of Babar Azam’s steady half-century and Thisara Perera’s quick blitz of 37 runs off 18 balls. Skipper Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Irfan were the stars of the bowling attack with 2 wickets each.
Hazratullah Zazai single-handedly eliminated the Kings as his innings of 77 runs off 38 balls was enough to take Zalmi over the line. Shoaib Malik and Sherfane Rutherford were useful with the bat in the middle-order as well.
Head to Head Record
Kamran Akmal and Shadab Khan in PSL 2021
In 11 league stage matches, Peshawar Zalmi slightly holds the upper hand in the head-to-head record as the Peshawar-based side has come out on top in 6 matches compared to United’s 5 wins.
In the three playoffs matches, Islamabad United has won two encounters including the PSL 2017-18 final whilst Zalmi had a big win in the 2019 PSL Eliminator 2.
In the PSL 2021 season, the Wahab Riaz-led side was one of the only two teams to beat Islamabad United during the league stage. Later, United scored the record total in PSL against Zalmi and came out on top of their Eliminator 2 opposition.
Kamran Akmal is the top scorer in the contest with 439 runs with Dwayne Smith in the second position maintaining a considerable distance from Akmal. Wahab Riaz has the most dismissals in clashes between Islamabad and Peshawar in the history of PSL with 21 wickets to his name.
Predicted Starting XIs
Islamabad United: Usman Khawaja, Colin Munro, Muhammad Akhlaq (Wk), Shadab Khan ©, Asif Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Hussain Talat, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Akif Javed, Fawad Ahmed
Peshawar Zalmi: Hazratullah Zazai, Kamran Akmal (Wk), Shoaib Malik, David Miller, Khalid Usman, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell, Wahab Riaz (C), Umaid Asif, Mohammad Imran, Mohammad Irfan
Prediction
Islamabad United topped the table and created an all-time PSL record against Peshawar Zalmi as Usman Khawaja’s innings of 105 runs powered his side to 247/2, the highest team total in the PSL.
Peshawar Zalmi has a balanced side but no stand-out match-winners in the middle-order which could hurt their chances of lifting the 2021 PSL trophy.
Islamabad United sealing their qualification to the PSL 2021 final on Monday is Parimatch’s prediction despite Peshawar Zalmi having the momentum on their side. Colin Munro and Sherfane Rutherford are expected to the best players for their respective sides.