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While the other five teams have been moving up and down the points table after each match, Lahore Qalandars have consistently found themselves at the bottom.
In the 16th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) Season 5, the Qalandars will face the Quetta Gladiators in this hometown of Lahore.
Historically, the Qalandars have enjoyed the most success against the Gladiators. In eight matches, they have managed to defeat Quetta Gladiators thrice while losing to them in five matches. While the stats aren’t very impressive, they’re still the best they’ve achieved in the PSL overall.
Fakhar Zaman is still their highest scorer overall in PSL, but he has struggled in this year’s tournament. In fact, all of the Qalandar batsmen have been off-colour yet again which has really impacted their overall standing. Their previous game against Peshawar Zalmi was cut short to 12 overs after a rain-affected start and they lost the match while chasing 132.
Mohammad Hafeez has been the Qalandars' best batsman so far as he has scored 116 runs in three matches, which includes an inning of 98 runs. Their bowlers have done far better, especially Shaheen Afridi, with six wickets in three matches at an average of 10.5. Dilbar Hussain and David Weise have also supported him well, but they still need to get their part-timers to stop leaking runs at crucial moments.
Quetta Gladiators have had a better start to the tournament and have already played five matches. They have won three of those matches, with some great performances from their batsmen and bowlers. They were outdone in all departments during their previous clash against the Multan Sultans, but that won’t really stop their charge in a tournament they have loved to dominate since the first season.
Four of their batsmen are currently in the top 10 scorers list and they will be looking to make a big score if they get a chance to bat first. Jason Roy and Shane Watson can give the team a big start and Azam Khan and Ben Cutting have proven to be handy players in the middle after some match-winning contributions.
With nine wickets in five matches, Mohammad Hasnain is currently the top bowler in the PSL and he will be looking for more victims in the Lahore line-up. Ben Cutting, Tymal Mills, and Naseem Shah will also look to pick up more wickets to improve their stats.
The Gladiators are the clear favourites to win this match, especially if they get a chance to bat first and put on a big total. While the crowd will once again turn up to support the home team, it will take much more than just support for the Qalandars to deliver a match-winning performance.
Match details
Tournament: Pakistan Super League Season 5, 2020
Venue: Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Date: 3rd March 2020
Time: 7.00 PM PST onwards
Pitch report
Lahore hasn’t had as many high scoring matches as the other stadiums, but the last match we saw between Lahore and Islamabad United was a high scoring one.
With the action returning to the vibrant city, the pitch will be fresher and could provide more assistance to the batsmen and the bowlers. Spinners have always done better on Lahore’s pitch, and we could see the part-timers get among the wickets.
The weather is expected to remain clear and that could restrict ball movement, giving the batsmen a lot more freedom to play their shots.
Predicted XIs
Lahore Qalandars: Fakhar Zaman, Chris Lynn, Mohammad Hafeez, Sohail Akhtar (Captain), Dane Vilas (Wicketkeeper), Samit Patel, David Wiese, Faizan Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Dilbar Hussain.
Quetta Gladiators: Jason Roy, Shane Watson, Ahsan Ali, Azam Khan, Sarfaraz Ahmed (Captain & Wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Anwar Ali, Sohail Khan, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, and Tymal Mills.
Where to watch the matches in Pakistan?
Lahore Qalandars v Quetta Gladiators will be telecast LIVE on PTV Sports.
Live stream details
The live stream for Lahore Qalandars v Quetta Gladiators will be available on Cricingiff and Cricketgateway.
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