Peshawar Zalmi are really proving they are worth being dubbed the ‘Yellow Storm’ as they have beaten every opponent that has come their way in the ongoing HBL PSL 2026 so far.
On the sixth occasion, they sailed over the Multan Sultans by 24 runs on the back of in-form Kusal Mendis’ 68 and Sufiyan Muqeem’s three-wicket burst in a spin masterclass that literally snatched victory from the jaws of defeat for the table-toppers Zalmi at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi on Monday night.
At the end of the seventh over, the Sultans were in the driver’s seat at 74/1, with Steve Smith and Josh Philippe well set on 23 and 30, respectively.
Then came Sufiyan, who weaved magic by first stemming the flow of runs, conceding just five in his opening over. In the 10th over, he sent Smith back to the hut for 31, deceiving him with a slower through-the-air delivery to break the 55-run second-wicket stand.
A ball later, Philippe was undone for 32 by a fuller delivery that struck his pads as the Australian batter failed to execute a paddle sweep.
Vice-captain Shan Masood then took charge of the chase, building useful partnerships with skipper Ashton Turner (20) and Arafat Minhas before eventually being dismissed by Iftikhar Ahmed in the 16th over. During his 35 off 19 balls, Shan struck five fours.
The Sultans suffered another setback in the following over as Nahid Rana removed Minhas, who managed just four off five deliveries.
Nahid struck again in the penultimate over, dismissing Mohammad Wasim Jr (4) caught behind while conceding only two runs, whereas Mohammad Nawaz fell to Aamir Jamal in the final over for 16.
For the table-toppers Zalmi, who have 11 points from six games with five wins and one no-result, Muqeem led the bowling effort with figures of 3/30 in four overs. Iftikhar Ahmed and Nahid Rana picked up two wickets each, while Aamir Jamal chipped in with one scalp.
Mendis continues fine form
After being asked to bat first, Zalmi posted a competitive 196/6 in their 20 overs, powered by a 40-ball 68 from Kusal Mendis and a blistering 38 from opener Mohammad Haris.
Multan Sultans captain Ashton Turner’s decision to start with spin from both ends backfired, as Zalmi raced to 38 runs in the first three overs.
Haris led the charge early on but was dismissed in the fifth over by Peter Siddle after a quick 38 off 17 balls, which included four sixes and three fours.
Babar Azam then added 24 runs for the second wicket with Mendis before falling to Mohammad Nawaz in the eighth over, managing a labored 18 off 20 deliveries.
Mendis was later joined by Farhan Yousaf, and the pair took control during the middle overs, putting together a brisk 63-run stand off just 38 balls.
Mohammad Wasim Jr broke the partnership in the 15th over by removing Farhan for 30.
Mendis continued to anchor the innings and shared a 34-run partnership with Michael Bracewell (14) before both were dismissed by Mohammad Ismail in the 18th over.
Mendis remained the standout performer for Zalmi, scoring a fluent 68 off 40 balls, including four fours and three sixes.
At the back end, Iftikhar Ahmed scored 11 of five balls, as Peshawar failed to provided a quick boost with an 11-run cameo off five deliveries before being dismissed by Siddle in the final over.
For Sultans, Peter Siddle and Mohammad Ismail picked up two wickets each, while Mohammad Nawaz and Mohammad Wasim Jr chipped in with one apiece.
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