Poor captaincy, inconsistent performances let Zalmi down

Peshawar Zalmi have been a perfect recipe for success in the previous editions of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) but this time around they were knocked out in the playoffs.

On paper, the runners-up of the previous edition looked extremely strong in the presence of veteran performers like captain Wahab Riaz, Shoaib Malik, Sherfane Rutherford.

The arrival of Hazratullah Zazai, Ben Cutting, Liam Livingstone and Usman Qadir strengthened the overall team’s composition.

However, that on-paper strength failed to materialise as the team never really performed to their potential.

The start of the seventh edition of the PSK for the Javed Afridi-owned team was a good one as they defeated Quetta Gladiators by five wickets.

Their exit came against Islamabad United where they suffered a five-wicket defeat in a nail-biting contest.

High Point

Through the season, Zalmi registered dominating wins over the powerhouses including Quetta Gladiators and Islamabad United. However, their run during the Lahore leg was their high point of the season during which they were quite consistent and were able to turn the stars in their favour.

Though they lost the first game of the Lahore-leg when the table-toppers Multan Sultan’s got the better of them after that, the 2017 champions won four matches in a row including victories against Karachi Kings, Quetta Gladiators, and Islamabad United by 55, 24, and 10 runs, respectively to qualify for the knockout stage. They also managed to win their last group stage match against Lahore Qalandars in the Super Over.

Low Point

Zalmi had quite a few low points in the PSL 2022, starting with their thrashing defeat against Islamabad United in Karachi where the target was chased inside 16 overs.

However, their lowest point must’ve been their performance in Eliminator 1 against Islamabad United where they let go of numerous chances in the field.

Alex Hales, who was the most influential player on the night during a tensed chase, was given as many as four chances, including a missed stumping and a dropped catch when he was on nought and nine.

Following that, a horrible spell of fast-bowling from none other than captain Wahab Riaz, where he conceded 52 runs in four overs, saw the side crash out of the event after a tense battle

In that match, Zalmi made quite a few interesting calls where Ali Majid was included in the starting XI ahead of Usman Qadir whereas Shoaib Malik and Hussain Talat was not used for bowling despite being very regularly used in the matches earlier.

Player’s rating:

Hazratullah Zazai – 5.5/10

Zazai was one of the overseas batting powerhouses in the tournament on whom Zalmi were banking on to star. However, he had a rather disappointing campaign having scored 170 runs at a strike rate of just 125 in seven appearances, which included a solitary half-century. Not only that but Zazai was pretty average in the field as well which cost Zalmi in the crucial junctures of the matches.

Kamran Akmal – 6/10

Though Kamran Akmal is the second-highest runs-scorer (1972 runs) in the history of the PSL it seems that his career is coming towards the very end. The 40-year-old showed glimpses of his glorious past but with the arrival of young Mohammad Haris in the form of wicketkeeper-batter, it looks very likely that the next year Zalmi will be without their all-time leading run-getter. Akmal scored 152 runs in six appearances with an average of 25.33 at a strike-rate of 138.18, including a solitary half-century.

Haider Ali – 5.5/10

Haider Ali joined Zalmi with a big reputation in the 2020 PSL but this year was a rather disappointing one for the top-order batter. The right-hander lacked consistency throughout and only managed to score 152 runs in nine innings with a strike rate of 116.03. It was because of this reason he was left out of the playing XI in some of the key matches as well.

Shoaib Malik – 9/10

Shoaib Malik was undoubtedly the star performer for Peshawar Zalmi in the 2022 edition of the PSL. Possessing a strike rate of 137.32, the 40-year-old ended up being the top scorer for the 2017 champions scoring 401 runs with an average of 44.55. Not only that but with the ball in hand, he claimed some key wickets and often had the trust of the captain to open the bowling.

Yasir Khan – 6/10

The right-handed opening batter was picked as an emerging cricketer for Zalmi and with only getting a handful of opportunities at the top of the order, he looked extremely pleasing to the eye. The right-hander scored 87 runs in four innings at an average of 21.75 along with the strike-rate of 152.63, which included the best score of 35.

Hussain Talat – 7.5/10

Hussain Talat had an impressive campaign for Peshawar Zalmi. The batting all-rounder, who joined the franchise after being released by Islamabad United, scored 177 runs at an average of 29.50 along with the strike-rate of 125.53, which included two half-centuries. With the ball in hand, Talat was more than useful for the franchise having claimed four wickets and just conceding runs at 7.88.

Salman Irshad – 9/10

Salman Irshad was arguably the best performer for Peshawar Zalmi alongside Shoaib Malik in the PSL 2022. The right-arm pacer, who joined the franchise from Lahore Qalandars, finished the campaign with 15 wickets at an impressive average of just 17.60. Irshad’s ability to bowl yorkers at will in the final stages of the innings made him by far the most successful bowler in the last five overs in the competition. His yorker to dismiss Alex Hales in the Eliminator 1 will be remembered by the viewers for the years to come.

Mohammad Haris – 8.5/10

Mohammad Haris was amongst the brightest young talents to emerge in the PSL 2022. The wicketkeeper-batter finally got an opportunity in the Lahore-leg after Kamran Akmal ruled because of fitness issues. Haris never looked uncomfortable and from the word go impressed everyone with his ability to strike clean at the top of the order. Such was his confidence with the bat in the early stages of the innings that might Hazratullah Zazai assumed to role of sheet anchor. Haris scored 166 runs in just five innings at an average of 33.20 along with an impressive strike-rate of 186.51, which included a half-century. That’s not it as he was extremely good behind the wicket and was also involved in arguably the catch of the tournament.

Ben Cutting – 7.5/10

Australia’s Ben Cutting added valuable experience to the Zalmi squad. With the bat, he proved to be handy after finishing as the second-highest scorer for his side having scored 197 in his nine innings including the unbeaten innings of 52. Meanwhile, with the ball, he was an additional pace option but he managed to bag only one wicket in his 6.5 overs. He missed the last few games after testing positive for Covid-19.

Sherfane Rutherford – 6/10

Sherfane Rutherford was retained by Peshawar Zalmi after his heroics in the previous campaign. However, the left-hander had a disappointing campaign and left midway citing bubble fatigue. He scored 160 runs in nine innings at an average of just 22.85 along with the strike-rate of 141.59. What’s most disappointing was his performance in the field where he dropped some sitters which cost the team in the end.

Usman Qadir – 6/10

Usman Qadir, who has played 17 T20Is for Pakistan, was picked by the Zalmis in PSL’s players draft for 2022. The 28-year-old was released by Multan Sultans after playing two seasons with them. The right-arm leggie managed to claim eight wickets in seven games but was on the expensive side with an economy-rate of 10.13.

Wahab Riaz – 6.5/10

Wahab Riaz became the first bowler in PSL history during the recently concluded edition to bag 100 wickets. However, other than that, Riaz did not have a tournament to remember. The left-arm pacer finished with nine wickets to his name but all of them came in Lahore as he remained wicketless in the four matches played in Karachi. The 36-year-old had a night to forget in the Eliminator where his spell clearly cost the team which left him distraught. His captaincy was questionable as well which is why Shoaib Malik was given the additional responsibility to set the field most of the time.