Peshawar Zalmi secured a dominant win over Lahore Qalandars in their PSL 2025 clash at the Gaddafi Stadium, thanks to a lethal bowling display from Alzarri Joseph and composed fifties from Babar Azam and Hussain Talat.
Lahore Qalandars, playing their first home game of the season, crumbled under pressure early on. After winning the toss and choosing to bowl, Zalmi unleashed a fiery pace attack that tore through the Qalandars’ top order. Joseph (3 wickets) and Luke Wood left the home side reeling at 21/4 within the first five overs.
Only Sikandar Raza showed resistance, scoring a fighting 52 off 37 balls. His calm approach and calculated aggression lifted Qalandars from complete collapse to a semi-competitive 129 all out. Support from the lower order, particularly a few late boundaries, offered some hope, but Joseph’s exceptional 18th over and Ali Raza’s tight 19th choked the final push.
The Qalandars had a brief glimmer of hope when Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf removed Zalmi’s top three for just 40 runs, igniting the home crowd. But the momentum didn’t last.
Babar Azam and Hussain Talat steadied the ship with a composed, unbroken 93-run partnership. Babar, ever the master in chases, crafted a calm half-century off 37 balls, while Talat played the perfect foil, reaching his own fifty with ease. With no scoreboard pressure and clever strike rotation, Zalmi crossed the target with 20 balls to spare.
Key Turning Point:
Babar survived a close LBW shout off Rauf, thanks to DRS, and responded with a sublime boundary — a moment that symbolized the momentum shift.
By the time Talat struck the winning runs, Peshawar Zalmi had surged to fourth place on the PSL 2025 points table, edging ahead of Lahore Qalandars on net run rate. With this win, Zalmi may have ignited their campaign while deepening concerns for the defending champions.