DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, CMC – Barbadian fast bowler Jofra Archer continued to prove his worth in gold, producing an incisive spell to hand Quetta Gladiators their first win of the Pakistan Super League here yesterday.
Opting to bat bowl first at the Dubai International Stadium, Gladiators restricted Lahore Qalanders to 119 for nine off their 20 overs, with New Zealand star Brendon McCullum top-scoring with 30 and West Indies player Sunil Narine getting 28.
The pair put on 46 off 21 deliveries for the first wicket and even when the left-handed Narine sliced pacer Rahat Ali to point in the fourth over, Qalanders still managed to get up to 60 for no further loss.
However, Archer then scythed through the innings with three for 23 from his four overs as Qalanders lost their next eight wickets for just 46 runs.
In reply, Gladiators motored to their target with six overs to spare, behind Australian Shane Watson’s 66 off 42 deliveries, to pull off an uncomplicated nine wicket victory.
Meanwhile, Darren Sammy’s Peshawar Zalmi also notched their maiden win of the tournament when they beat Andre Russell’s Islamabad United by 34 runs at the same venue.
Sent in, Zalmi rallied to 176 for six off their 20 overs with Pakistan’s Kamran Akmal hitting 53 and Bangladesh’s Tamim Iqbal scoring 39.
Former Barbados and West Indies batsman Dwayne Smith smashed 30 from 21 deliveries.
In reply, Faheem Ashraf struck 54 from 30 deliveries but Islamabad could only muster 142 for nine.
Both Russell and his fellow Jamaica and West Indies teammate, Chadwick Walton, scored 11.
