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Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi are no strangers to one another, and they will face off once again during this year’s Pakistan Super League (PSL) in the 20th match of the tournament. Their first encounter in Rawalpindi was washed out by rain, and both teams will look forward to playing each other in this match.
Islamabad has won six of their eleven concluded matches, while the Zalmi has taken five victories. This makes them both near equals head-to-head, which will make this contest even more exciting to watch.
Islamabad lost the two games they played against Zalmi last season which will play on their minds. They will rely on their batting once again which is doing a great job in this season, even though the result has not always been in their favour.
Luke Ronchi and Shadab Khan are among the top performers in this year’s PSL, while Dawid Malan and Colin Ingram have provided great support to them throughout. Colin Munro found his footing in the previous match, and it will be Malan who'll have to sit out again as the team will look to make room for an international bowler.
Speaking of international bowlers, Dale Steyn is looking to lead the Men in Red to victory since his arrival in this year’s PSL, and he will once again be a key player for the side. Faheem Ashraf, Muhammad Musa, and Amad Butt have done well with the ball but they have given away too many runs in each game. The captain’s bowling could come in handy in Rawalpindi once again. The entire team will need to play as one once again if they plan to get another win to their name as the playoffs draw nearer.
Peshawar Zalmi has had an up and down tournament too, and their batsmen and bowlers have given varied performances. There were rumours of rifts arising in the team after Darren Sammy was rested for the match against Karachi Kings, but Sammy himself has come out to deny them. Since then, Zalmi's former captain has been made the coach of the team effective immediately and Wahab Riaz will continue as the captain.
The entire batting has revolved around Kamran Akmal and Liam Livingstone for now, and they will need someone else to put their hand up too. Shoaib Malik seems to be getting back in the zone, and a good performance from him is expected during this match. Haider Ali also needs to prove that he is not just a one-match wonder, and he will be looking to get more runs under his belt.
Zalmi’s bowling has let them down throughout the tournament, and Wahab Riaz has been the only one to show some fight in the bowling line-up. Lewis Gregory has been providing some support to the bowling pack, and there will be a lot of expectations attached to him. Hasan Ali has been off-color for the past few months, and his disappointing form has hurt the team this time around.
It will be interesting to see whether Darren Sammy will decide to start bowling for his team once again or not as they are reaching a crucial stage in this PSL. This game could go either way as both teams are former champions but are struggling to get up in this season. Both teams will look to play out of their skins to win this match.
Match details
Tournament: Pakistan Super League Season 5, 2020
Venue: Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi
Date: 7th March 2020
Time: 2.00 PM PST onwards
Pitch report
Islamabad will get another chance to face Peshawar at their home ground after the first match between the two sides was washed out. The chances for rain during this match is high once again, but we could get some time during the afternoon for this match to get started.
The weather conditions will be damp throughout which will make gripping the ball difficult, and the spinners may suffer during that. The outfield will be slow, but the flat track will provide the batsmen some even bounce to play with.
We hope to get at least 10 overs per side in this one and it could actually turn out to be a fun high-scoring clash.
Predicted XIs
Islamabad United: Luke Ronchi (wk), Dawid Malan, Rizwan Hussain, Hussain Talat, Colin Ingram, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Shadab Khan (Captain), Dale Steyn, Muhammad Musa, and Ahmed Safi Abdullah.
Peshawar Zalmi: Tom Banton, Kamran Akmal (wk), Haider Ali, Shoaib Malik, Liam Livingstone, Liam Dawson, Lewis Gregory, Wahab Riaz (Captain), Hasan Ali, Rahat Ali, and Yasir Shah.
Where to watch the matches in Pakistan?
Islamabad United v Peshawar Zalmi will be telecast LIVE on PTV Sports.
Live stream details
The live stream for Islamabad United v Peshawar Zalmi will be available on Cricingif and Cricketgateway.
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