Bracewell, Samad's late blitz steers Zalmi past Pindiz in a run-fest
Samad produced a game-changing 33 off just 11 balls while Bracewell's 35 not out ensured there were no hiccups to help Peshawar Zalmi chase down 215 in 19.1 overs
Syed Irtiza Ali
Associate Producer, Karachi
Syed Irtiza Ali is a sports journalist with writing experience since 2016. For five years, contributed freelance articles to The News on Sunday (TNS), on all major sports. In late 2021, joined Geo News as a Sports Sub-Editor. Have written bylines for TNS, Geo, and Geo Super. He aims to bring attention to overlooked sports such as squash and hockey.
Michael Bracewell ensured there were no late hiccups, striking a quick 35 off 17 balls, including four sixes to help Peshawar Zalmi win by 5 wickets.
PCB
The Peshawar Zalmi have kicked off their HBL PSL 2026 campaign with a bang. And it all came on the back of some sensational late hitting by Michael Bracewell and Abdul Samad, which helped them chase down a massive 215-run target against RawalPindiz in the third match of PSL 11 at Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday.
The Zalmis were given a flying start by Mohammad Haris (47) and skipper Babar Azam (39), who put on 78 runs for the opening wicket.
The momentum was maintained by Kusal Mendis with a gritty 31, before Abdul Samad produced a game-changing cameo, smashing 33 off just 11 balls with four towering sixes to swing the chase back in Zalmi’s favour.
After Samad’s explosive knock, Michael Bracewell ensured there were no late hiccups, striking a quick 35 off 17 balls, including four sixes. Aamir Jamal then finished the match in style with an unbeaten 17 off five deliveries as Zalmi sealed victory on the first ball of the final over.
For Pindiz, Amad Butt took two wickets, while Mohammad Amir, Asif Afridi and Rishad Hossain picked up one each.
Yasir shines for RawalPindiz
Opting to bat first, Rawalpindi posted a challenging 214-run total, powered by a superb 83 from Yasir Khan.
He shared a 125-run opening partnership with Mohammad Rizwan, who scored 41 off 32 balls with five fours and a six.
Yasir brought up his third PSL half-century and continued his aggressive strokeplay before falling for 83 off 46 balls, hitting seven fours and six sixes.
Pacer Ali Raza broke the opening stand by dismissing Rizwan and later removed Yasir in the 15th over to ending his superb knock laced with seven fours and six sixes with the RawalPindiz’s score at 144 for 2.
In the latter stages, Kamran Ghulam and Daryl Mitchell accelerated the scoring rate and pushed the total beyond 150 with Aaron Hardie removing Ghulam for 37 off 20 balls.
Meanwhile, a late cameo from Sam Billings, who remained unbeaten on 18 off eight balls, pushed the total further, while Abdullah Fazal added five runs.
For Zalmis, Ali Raza finished with figures of 2 for 42 in three overs, while Hardie and Jamal claimed one wicket each.
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