MULTAN: At a muted Multan Cricket Stadium, it was a game reflective of the dismal campaign the home side has had. The Multan Sultans couldn’t muster any strength to stave away Peshawar Zalmi; overran by Babar Azam’s side who hauled themselves firmly into Pakistan Super League playoffs contention with a clinical seven-wicket victory on Monday night.
With their fourth win of the season, Zalmi moved to eight points, just one behind Lahore Qalandars who occupy the fourth spot in the table, with a game in hand. For the Sultans, it was the fifth defeat in a row.
On this showing, Mohammad Rizwan’s men — winners in 2021 and finalists in each of the last four seasons — look unlikely to get even a consolation win in their final match of the season against the Quetta Gladiators on Sunday.
With their disciplined bowling, Zalmi strangled the Sultans and shot them down for a paltry 108 — pacer Ahmed Daniyal (3-17) and spinner Maaz Sadaqat (2-12) ripping through the opposition batting.
As Saim Ayub finally found some form and big hits — smashing three sixes and four fours in a 33-ball 49, it became a question of how long Zalmi will take to chase down the total. Max Bryant hit a six and five fours in a 20-ball 38 not out to finish things off with a full seven overs to spare.
Already out of playoffs contention, there was only pride on the line for the Sultans, aiming to thwart Zalmi’s ambitions with just a second win in their penultimate game of the season.
Having chosen to bat, they made a tentative start before Rizwan broke free in the second over, striking consecutive boundaries off Alzarri Joseph.
His opening partner Yasir Khan also got two fours in the third over by Luke Wood but departed soon after, top-edging Saim to short fine.
Rizwan (17) swept Saim for his third boundary but fell in the sixth over when he found Ahmed at backward square off Wood; Sultans ending the powerplay at 40-2.
Tayyab Tahir flickered briefly in his 18-ball 22, hitting two fours and a massive six — off Saim — before mistiming Ahmed to Mitchell Owen at deep square leg.
And Zalmi were well and truly on top when spinner Maaz cleaned up Ashton Turner for a duck to leave the Sultans at 62-4 at the midway point of their innings.
Maaz would then disturb the timber once again to send back Mohammad Amir Barki; the Sultans having slumped from 60-2 to 65-5.
It would get worse with Ali Raza having Shahid Aziz caught behind; the Sultans having seen four wickets fall for the addition of just six runs.
An indication of how Zalmi had tightened the noose came in the 14th over when Shai Hope, who had arrived after Rizwan’s dismissal, slammed Maaz stright down the ground for a four for the Sultans’ first boundary after 28 balls.
Hope then launched Joseph over long off for six but his West Indies compatriot soon exacted revenge by dismissing him for a 21-ball 23 four balls later with the Sultans at 87-7 with five overs to go.
