GUYANA: Tabraiz Shamsi and Asif Afridi took three wickets each to steer Lahore Qalandars to a narrow ten-run victory over Victoria in the Global Super League (GSL) here at Providence Stadium on Tuesday.
Lahore Qalandars were invited to bat first and they were bundled for 139 in the final over, courtesy of a dominant bowling attack from Victoria.
Opening batter Mirza Baig top-scored with a scratchy 39 off 36, which featured two boundaries and one six.
Meanwhile, Muhammad Akhlaq and Mohammad Faizan played valuable cameos of 26 and 25 respectively to take their team to a respectable total.
No other batters could pose much threat as Dominic Drakes and Jackson Smith took three wickets each to wrap up Lahore Qalandars. Meanwhile, Max Birthisel and Callum Stow bagged one wicket each.
In response, Victoria got off to a brilliant start with the opening stand of 67 runs between Blake Macdonald and Joe Clarke.
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However, both batters fell in quick succession to leave Victoria reeling at 73-2 in 8.5 overs.
Blake Macdonald scored 33 off 25 with five boundaries, including one six, while Joe Clarke struck 32 runs from 26 balls, laced with two boundaries and one six.
Lahore Qalandars bowlers did not allow any batter to settle in, except Karima Gore, who struck 25 off 22. However, Gore’s cameo was not enough as Victoria bundled for 129 in 19.3 overs.
Tabraiz Shamsi returned with figures of 3-11, while Asif Afridi claimed three wickets after giving away 31 runs. Salman Mirza also contributed with two wickets and Faheem Ashraf took one wicket.
Notably, this was Lahore Qalandars’ second victory in the inaugural edition of the Global Super League (GSL) and they are sitting third in the points table.
With one last group stage match against the struggling Rangpur Riders ahead, they have a chance to make their case strong for the finals.
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