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RAWALPINDI: Jason Holder’s four-wicket haul and an unbeaten half-century from Colin Munro powered Islamabad United to a huge win over Lahore Qalandars in the opening match of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 10 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Friday.

Chasing a meagre total of 140, United comfortably knocked down the winning runs, losing 2 wickets in the process with 14 balls to spare.

The home team started their run chase on a challenging note, losing debutant opener Andries Gous in the second over with only eight runs scored.

After this early setback, Munro came out to bat alongside Sahibzada Farhan, and together they mounted a recovery by adding 55 runs for the second wicket.

However, Farhan fell victim to Haris Rauf in the ninth over, contributing 25 runs off 24 balls.

Next, Munro partnered with Salman Ali Agha, and the two formed a match-winning partnership of 80 runs, guiding the team to victory.

Munro top-scored with an unbeaten 59 runs off 42 balls, featuring seven fours and a six, while Agha contributed 41 not out from 34 balls, which included three fours and a six.

For the Lahore Qalandars, both Asif Afridi and Haris Rauf managed to take one wicket each.

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Earlier, Islamabad United captain Shadab Khan won the toss and chose to bowl first.

This decision proved advantageous for the defending champions, as their bowling unit, led by Holder, effectively dismantled the Lahore Qalandars’ batting lineup. The Qalandars were bowled out for a mere 139 runs in just 19.2 overs.

The start of the Qalandars’ innings was particularly poor, losing key batter Fakhar Zaman for just one run in the second over, with only four runs on the board.

Abdullah Shafique batted at number three and quickly established himself as a reliable player, but the rest of the team struggled, resulting in a disappointing overall score for the visitors.

Shafique was the top scorer, making 66 runs off 38 balls, which included six fours and three sixes, before being dismissed near the end of the innings.

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He built important partnerships with Daryl Mitchell and Sikandar Raza, who contributed 13 and 23 runs, respectively.

Unfortunately, the other Qalandars batters found it difficult to handle the disciplined bowling attack from United, with none managing to score in double figures.

For United, Jason Holder stood out with impressive bowling figures of 4 wickets for 26 runs over four overs, while captain Shadab Khan took three wickets.

Imad Wasim, Naseem Shah, and overseas bowler Riley Meredith each claimed one wicket as well.

PLAYING XIs

Islamabad United: Andries Gous, Sahibzada Farhan, Colin Munro, Salman Ali Agha, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan (c), Jason Holder, Imad Wasim, Muhammad Shahzad, Naseem Shah and Riley Meredith.

Lahore Qalandars: Fakhar Zaman, Muhammad Naeem, Abdullah Shafique, Daryl Mitchell, Sam Billings, Sikandar Raza, David Wiese, Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Jahandad Khan, Haris Rauf, Asif Afridi.

After a demoralizing postponement due to COVID-19 in March, the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season is back from today at the Sheikh Zayed International Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
Fourteen matches were played at the National Stadium in Karachi. The four top teams have all won three matches each while Multan Sultans, Quetta Gladiators have bagged one. The onus is now going to be on adapting quickly to the conditions.
Islamabad United and Lahore Qalandars will go head to head at 9.00 PM. Islamabad are at the third position while Lahore are a position lower at fourth due to a slight different in the net run rate. The winner will go at the top with four wins and eight points.

Lahore Qalandars

Lahore Qalandars will look to bank on their promising bowling line-up. Shaheen Afridi, Rashid Khan, Haris Rauf, Dilbar Hussain, and Ahmed Daniyal are going to be the strike bowlers while Mohammad Hafeez, Seekuge Prasanna, James Faulkner supporting the above-mentioned.
Qalandars batting were also on the show during Karachi leg. The highest run-getters for them are Hafeez and Fakhar Zaman with more than 180 runs each.
Australia’s duo of Ben Dunk and Calum Callum Ferguson will bring their heavy T20 experience while Singapore’s Tim David will look to replicate his BBL’s performance lower down the order.

Islamabad United

Islamabad United played impressively in Karachi but they have been hit by the absence of their overseas players. Alex Hales and Phil Salt are not a part of the squad and they have replaced by Usman Khawaja and Colin Munro, the likely openers.
United will heavily rely on local stars to do well. The roti-gang of Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Asif Ali will look to take United’s hopes while Iftikhar Ahmed, Hussain Talat and Zafar Gohar would once again claim their stake.
The bowling attack for Islamabad United is unchanged and so this can be seen as an area of strength. Hasan Ali is in the middle of a fantastic period of his career and is the bowler to watch out for. With Fawad Ahmed, Mohammad Wasim, Muhammad Musa also in the squad, Islamabad United has a lot of options to work with.

Conditions

The conditions in Abu Dhabi are going to be very hot and temperatures can hit 40 degrees celsius as well. With start times later in the evening, it is hoped that the players are going to be able to adapt to the tough conditions.
The pitch must be flat and good for batting. The outfield is of a decent size and so the spinners play a big role. A score of around 170 should be seen as par batting first.

Likely XIs

Islamabad United: Colin Munro, Usman Khawaja, Shadab Khan (C), Hussain Talat, Rohail Nazir (wk), Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Zafar Gohar, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Fawad Ahmed
Lahore Qalandars:
Sohail Akhtar (C), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Callum Ferguson, Ben Dunk (WK), Tim David, Shaheen Afridi, Rashid Khan, Haris Rauf, Dilbar Hussain, Ahmed Daniyal

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Islamabad United crush Lahore Qalandars in PSL 10 opener