CECC vs Kuwait Swedish - Commentary

Right then, that's all from this game. The Pakistan Super League 2023 action continues on Friday, 3rd March as Islamabad United take on Karachi Kings at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. That game will begin at 7.30 pm IST (2.00 pm GMT). As always, you can join us in advance for the build-up. Until then, take care and goodbye!

Shaheen Afridi, the skipper of Lahore Qalandars starts by congratulating his team for the win and thanks the Lahore crowd for their support. Reckons that they needed a left-handed batter in the middle so he promoted himself in the order. Adds that a team can lose wickets early but it is important to provide support which Sikandar Raza and Rashid Khan did. Shares that his plan was to bowl normal lengths on this wicket. Ends by saying that he has trust in his side's bowling and it is all about performing according to the responsibilities.

Sikandar Raza is the Player of the Match for his unbeaten knock of 71 runs from 34 balls. He says that he wanted to go hard and keep scoring. Adds that he wanted to go for a competitive total and was happy with 149 which he thought was 10 runs short. Mentions that he wanted to keep ticking with singles and doubles and put the bad ball away for boundaries. Adds that he and Rashid Khan have had good partnerships in the past since they run well between the wickets and the 60-odd run stand changed the game for them. Mentions that the wicket had variable bounce and made it difficult for batting. Closes by crediting all the bowlers to pull things back after Quetta Gladiators’s powerplay and get the win.

Sarfaraz Ahmed, the skipper of Quetta Gladiators, says that they made a lot of mistakes. Adds that they started well in the first half and reduced the Lahore Qalandars to 50 for 7 and says that they should have kept them under 100. Mentions that they started the chase well but got behind after the Powerplay and got just 10 runs in the next 4 overs. Says that the batters got under pressure and they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Closes by adding that they will try to play better in the next game and get the win.

Time for the presentations...

Earlier in the game, after Sarfaraz Ahmed called it right and sent Lahore Qalandars into bat, they were off to a shaky start losing three wickets in the first four overs. They were unable to recover from that start and were soon reduced to 50-7. Rashid Khan and Sikandar Raza then got together and forged a solid recovery to help Lahore Qalandars reach a competitive total on the board. This partnership proved to be the difference between the two sides as the Lahore Qalandars bowlers stepped up and completed an impressive target defence. With this win, Lahore Qalandars strengthen their position at the top of the points table with 10 points from 5 wins.

In their pursuit of 149, Quetta Gladiators were off to a flying start with Will Smeed taking the charge. However, the dismissal of both openers in quick succession pegged them back in the chase. The runs dried up for them and the run out of Mohammad Hafeez made matters worse for them. Iftikhar Ahmed and Martin Guptill followed him soon after and Quetta Gladiators were reduced to 80-5. Sarfaraz Ahmed and Odean Smith then steadied the ship but the latter perished in his quest to keep up with the required run rate. Despite skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed's lone resistance, the target proved to be out of their reach and they emerged second best tonight.

A clinical bowling performance by Lahore Qalandars helps them defend a below-par total and by doing so, they have handed Quetta Gladiators their fifth defeat of the season. With not a big total to defend, Lahore Qalandars needed their new ball bowlers to set the tone early but they failed to do so, conceding 52 runs in the first five overs. They pulled things back with two quick wickets and kept the pressure on the opposition batters. They kept hitting their lines and lengths consistently and were rewarded with wickets at regular intervals. Their bowling was equally good towards the end allowing them to register a 17-run win. Haris Rauf was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3 for 22 from his four overs while Rashid Khan accounted for two wickets and Sikandar Raza had a wicket to his name as well.

Zaman Khan will bowl the final over. Quetta Gladiators need 25 off the last six deliveries.

Mohammad Nawaz comes in at number 8.