Picture Credit: Twitter
The 27th match of the Pakistan Super League brought the best out of England all-rounder Harry Brooks (102 off 49) and Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman (51 off 41). In a match between Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United, the duo built a 101-run stand for Lahore Qalandars in 1st innings and together, they produced an innings worth watching in the tournament. While chasing 197-6, Islamabad United fell short of 66-runs after bundling out for 131.
Four bowlers of Lahore Qalandars clinched two wickets each in the game and made it difficult for opponent batters to make mark. Shaheen Afridi, Zaman Khan and Haris Rauf provided a couple of breakthroughs, while bowling at an economy of 7 plus. Meanwhile, Rashid Khan, who was playing his last game of the season due to national duties, clinched two crucial wickets and finished the game with an impressive economy of 4.80 after bowling four overs of his quota.
Following Rashid's impressive performance in the tournament, a heartwarming gesture by Qalandars got everyone's attention as they expressed their gratitude towards Rashid Khan for his efforts in the 7th edition of PSL. In a viral clip posted by official Twitter handle of PSL, the right-arm spinner received an emotional farewell from his teammates. As the 23-year-old walked off the ground for the last game this season, his teammates gave him a 'guard of honour.'
Watch the video here:
Rashid can be seen running amidst their rows, joining hands with each one of them while he also poses in his 'Cobra-style celebration.' The Afghan player thanked his fans and franchise for their support and wished that Lahore would win the tournament. He said, "Lahore has taken good care of me in the post-match ceremony. I am so happy with the love. I wish them all the very best for the rest of the competition. It makes me happy that I leave the team with us on the top. It is a wonderful family, it was about playing our natural game. We had a bad night yesterday. It was about enjoying your game."
Post-match, Lahore Qalandars' skipper Shaheen Afridi took to Twitter to post a heartfelt message for his teammate and wished him good luck for his national duties.
While the match delivered one of the best batting displays from Harry Brooks and Fakhar Zaman, it also had the presence of US Consultant General William Makaneole in the sitting area, which grabbed a lot of attention as well. Makaneole, who had the company of PCB Chief Ramiz Raja, enjoyed the superb batting display from both the batters and was seen doing push-ups after every boundary and a six by Fakhar Zaman and Brooks. Undoubtedly, PSL is turning out to be one of the most exciting franchise tournaments globally. Although the T20 tournament grabbed a bit of controversy with James Faulkner's allegation of non-payment, later in the day, the all-around performance from Lahore Qalandars became the talking point.
