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Who will win PSL 2023? Qalandars or Sultans?

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The finals of the Pakistan Super League 2023 between Lahore Qalandars and Multan Sultans will take place on Saturday, 18 March 2023, at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.

The Sultans will aiming to win the PSL trophy, but also seek revenge against Lahore, who had beaten them convincingly in last year’s final at the same venue.

The head-to-head record between the two teams reveals that Lahore has won 8 out of the 15 matches played, while Multan has won 7.

The Sultans qualified for the final by bowling out Lahore for just 76 runs, winning by 84 runs, after finishing second in the league stage.

Sheldon Cottrell’s 3-wicket haul led to Lahore’s collapse after Kieron Pollard’s fifty propelled the Sultans to 160/5.

Lahore Qalandars’ biggest challenge was to bat first if they lost the toss against Peshawar Zalmi.

However, having passed that test, they are in an excellent position going into the final.

In the qualifier match, Lahore finally won a match when batting second, a massive psychological boost for them.

Chasing 172 to beat Peshawar Zalmi, they reached their target with four wickets in hand and seven balls to spare, setting up this final encounter with Multan.

Mirza Baig and pacer Zaman Khan were the stars for Lahore, and they reached their third PSL final in four seasons.

Team News

Right-arm pacer Shahnawaz Dahani is back in the Multan Sultans squad after coincidentally getting injured in their opening match of the season against Qalandars.

However, he is unlikely to play the final as young pacers Abbas Afridi and Ihsanullah are in terrific form, with 23 and 21 wickets respectively.

The Sultans have a quartet of match-winning all-rounders in Pollard, Khushdil Shah, Anwar Ali and Usama Mir who add a vital balance to the side.

Anwar and Usama Mir have been important contributors with the ball picking up 23 wickets amongst them, so far.

Sultans have another trump card up their sleeve – Usman Khan whose explosive hitting helped  him smash the fastest ever century in PSL history.

Due to his red hot form, he will displace Shan Masood, who scored two half-centuries in the last five innings and has scored 236 runs in the nine innings.

Mohammad Rizwan is in pole position to bag the Green Cap (Most runs in PSL 2023) for the season with 516 runs in 11 innings.

For Lahore, the big problem is the form of their star batters.

Fakhar Zaman showed his class a brilliant 115 late in the league stages but since then has scored 25 runs in three innings.

Abdullah Shafique, who was sent back to No. 3, has managed just 20 runs in last five innings.

However, if Lahore is in the final, it’s largely due to their bowling attack, which is arguably the most lethal amongst all T20 franchises in the world.

Haris Rauf has picked up 13 of his 17 wickets came in the last six games, including 3/34 in the last match.

Even junior partner, Zaman Khan has impressed with 13 wickets, seven of which came in the last four games.

Apart from pace talisman Shaheen Afridi, they also boast of the Afghan genius, Rashid Khan who has 18 wickets in 10 games and holds the Maroon cap for being the highest wicket taker.

Lahore Qalandars Predicted Playing XI:

Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Kamran Ghulam, Sam Billings, Hussain Talat, Sikandar Raza, David Wiese, Rashid Khan, Shaheen Afridi ©, Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan

Multan Sultans Predicted Playing XI:

Usman Khan, Mohammad Rizwan ©, Rilee Rossouw, Kieron Pollard, Tim David, Khushdil Shah, Anwar Ali, Usama Mir, Abbas Afridi, Izharulhaq Naveed, Ihsanullah

Who will win

Lahore Qalandars’ primary weakness was their batting, but having won a match while chasing in the qualifier, they are in a better position.

Lahore has a fantastic bowling attack, which may prove decisive in a big final.

At the same time, Multan Sultans have emerged as the team to beat in this edition of the PSL.

The likes of Kieron Pollard, Tim David, Rilee Rossouw and Usman Khan have stood up and delivered when it mattered and their confidence must be sky-high.

To stand a chance against the rampaging batting lineup of the Sultans, the Qalandars bowlers must bring their A-game.

These two teams have faced each other three times across the tournament, with Lahore winning both group games before Multan Sultans overcame them comprehensively in the qualifier.

T20 cricket is about mindset and momentum and in this aspect, we feel Multan have the edge over Lahore.

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Smriti Mandhana and Ellyse Perry star in RCB women’s comeback win against UP Warriorz in WPL 2024

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Smriti Mandhana and Alyssa Healy (Source - X)

RCB women overcame UP Warriorz by 23 runs to clinch their third win of the season. The home side outperformed Warriorz in all the facets of the game and emerged victorious. A collective team effort, particularly with the bat, helped RCB women to beat Warriorz for the second time in the season. They now have three wins in their five matches in the WPL 2024.

Alyssa Healy won the toss and opted to field first. Given how things have panned out in the league so far, it needed a great batting performance from RCB to challenge the chasing side. The home side did exactly that. They were full of intent which was lacking in the last few games. Right from the start, S Meghana and Smriti Mandhana smashed the bowlers.

It was the night of the RCB skipper. The Southpaw scored 80(50) in her stay. S Meghana perished after a valuable 28(21). Ellyse Perry batted well and registered her first fifty of the WPL 2024. She was aided well towards the end by Richa Ghosh whose 21(10) propelled RCB to a score of 198 on the board. It was the highest team total in the WPL 2024.

Alyssa Healy’s efforts go in vain

Chasing the daunting total, UP Warriorz were off to a flier. The opening duo of Healy and Kiran Navgire gave a fiery start to the visiting side. When the two were batting in the PP overs, it seemed like the Warriorz could pull off an insane chase. However, Sophie Devine brought RCB back into the game with crucial wickets. At Bengaluru, the home crowd was literally behind the RCB women.

It helped the home side to stay calm and do their job with ease. Sophie Molineux and Asha Sobhana were the pick of the bowlers, who claimed 2/29 each in their spell of four overs. While Healy scored a fifty and Deepti tried her best in the death overs, ten daunting targets could not be chased down. Despite the early hiccups, RCB managed to restrict UP Warriorz to a score of 175 and won by 23 runs.

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WATCH: Ellyse Perry in disbelief as her six breaks car’s window

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Ellyse Perry smashed a six in the match against UP Warriorz in the WPL 2024. It was an interesting six as the ball travelled towards the boundary ropes and fell exactly on the window of the car. As a result, the glass of the window was broken. The car is set to be provided as a reward for the player of the tournament.

It was the over of Deepti Sharma towards the last few moments of RCB’s innings. Before Perry struck, the home side was in a great position in the match, thanks to a great start provided by Smriti Mandhana. The star batter scored 80 (50) and shined in front of the home crowd. Her form helped RCB to have a good momentum towards the death overs.

Watch the viral video here –

Perry, who was struggling till that point, opened up and smashed the bowlers for fun. She went hard against the spinners like Rajeshwari Gayakwad and Deepti Sharma who were asked to bowl at the death. The right-handed batter smashed back-to-back sixes in the over of Sharma. One of those travelled towards the mid-wicket region where the car was stationed. The video of her shot has gone viral on X.

RCB teammates laugh, Ellyse Perry in disbelief

As the ball fell on the car and damaged the window, the fans erupted. There was no end to the joy of the fans who started chanting “Perry.. Perry..” and lit the atmosphere of the stadium. However, Perry was in disbelief. As she saw the impact of the ball damaging the car’s window, the Australian batter could not believe her eyes and thought about what she had just done.

On the other hand, the RCB teammates of Perry were in awe of the shot. They looked at the replays and appreciated the shot of Perry. At the same time, players like Sophie Molineux and Sophie Devine had a laugh about the car’s window getting damaged. Ellyse scored a fifty and helped her team score 198 runs with her batting in front of the home crowd.

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Praveen Kumar addresses Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer’s negligence of taking part in Ranji Trophy

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Praveen Kumar

Praveen Kumar has given his opinion on the preferences of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer in recent times. The duo did not take part in the Ranji Trophy matches for their respective teams despite being fit. It did not go well with the Indian Cricket Board which landed the duo without a ventral contract which was announced a few days back.

Praveen Kumar has reacted to the issue recently. The former India pacer claimed that he has been of an opinion on the issue for a long time. Praveen felt that one should definitely earn money but not at the cost of neglecting to play for domestic and national teams. The right-arm pacer felt that players today are having a certain mentality which is not good.

The former pacer claimed that the players have a mindset that they can rest for a month before taking part in the IPL, thereby bypassing playing for their national team or the domestic teams. Praveen felt that the players could not resist letting go of money which they could earn by taking part in the IPL and other T20 leagues (For foreign players).

‘Ye mentally hota hai, ki mai itne paise kaise chodun’ – Praveen Kumar

“This thing is now firmly in the mind of players. Mai ek mahine pehle rest kar lunga, fir IPL khel lunga. Ye mentally hota hai, ki mai itne paise kaise chodun,” said Praveen in the interview. He claimed that youngsters these days are spoilt and are behind money. The former RCB pacer felt that it is not fair on the part of the young players to neglect the country over the IPL.

Kumar felt that a player needs to maintain a balance between playing for the IPL team and for the country. He felt that money is an important factor, but not at the cost of playing for the national team. “But this is not fair at all. A player needs to balance things. Money is important, but this (giving franchise cricket the priority) is wrong,” said the former Indian bowler in the interview.

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