Table-toppers Lahore will continue their campaign with a late-night clash with former winner Peshawar. Lahore made a fluent start to the resumption with a convincing 5-wicket victory.
Match Timings: June 10, 11:30 PM IST
Team Preview
In the second game of the day, Lahore will now play against Peshawar. Both sides are in the top four and having a top form. Lahore have lost just one game out of five and occupies the top position in the points table, while Peshawar lost two games out of five.
Lahore have a strong team and after the draft, they have made it a formidable squad with a good combination of batting and bowling. James Faulkner came as a surprise package with a 3-wicket haul in his debut in Pak T20 League. Rashid Khan went for just 9 runs in his spell and showed how he is the number one T20 star. Lahore’s chase become interesting due to their poor run rate and when Ben Dunk got out, they required 22 runs off 8 balls. Rashid proved his worth with the bat as well and won the match for Lahore on the final ball.
Lahore has a quality middle-order and top-order is also decent but they have to play according to the game. Chasing will not be as easier as they did in Karachi. The best part is their bowling unit has become much stronger after the inclusion of Faulkner and Rashid.
Meanwhile, Peshawar would look to make a winning start to the Abu Dhabi leg. They lost only two games in Karachi's leg and one of the defeats came in their previous game when defending champions chased down 189 with 3 balls spare. The game was in full control of them but Nabi’s blistering knock spoiled powerplay’s efforts. They gonna miss their key overseas players like Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, and Ravi Bopara. Livingstone even smashed 94 in last night’s Blast game in England. They have included West Indian all-rounder Fabian Allen to fill the gap of Bopara. Rovman Powell, Waqar Salamkheil, and Hazratullah Zazai are other options.
Hazratullah Zazai can open along with Kamran Akmal or they can even try Imam ul Haq in the opening slot and Haider Ali will come at number three. David Miller will take the place in middle-order, followed by Allen at down-order to accelerate the innings. Allen impressed for Punjab with his spin and this track is ideal for him. Wahab will also be back who missed out the previous game. Fidel Edwards might be considered as the extra pacer and they can replace him with a Pakistani pacer.
Pitch Report
Abu Dhabi’s surface offers good assistance between bat and ball. Spin would take control of the game because there was no dew in the first game. We can expect a score between 150-160 and it would be a competitive total. The Batting-first side will have a slight advantage if they cross 150 in the first innings.
Possible XI
Peshawar
Kamran Akmal (wk), Imam Ul Haq, Shoaib Malik (c), Haider Ali, David Miller, Amad Butt, Fabian Allen, Umaid Asif, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Imran, Mohammad Irfan
Lahore
Fakhar Zaman, Sohail Akhtar (c), Muhammad Faizan, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk (wk), Tim David, James Faulkner, Rashid Khan, Ahmed Daniyal, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf
Key Players
Peshawar
Kamran Akmal
2nd highest run-scorer in Pak T20 League history and a dangerous batsman in opening
Fabian Allen
Handy with the bowl due to extra spin here and can score quick runs down-order
Lahore
Fakhar Zaman
195 runs so far in Pak T20 League 2021 & coming off an excellent SA tour
Rashid Khan
Continued his top-form in the first game, conceded just 9 runs in spell, and played a cameo to secure a win
