PSL 7: Islamabad United outclass Peshawar Zalmi in first Eliminator

Islamabad United 170 for 5 (Hales 62, Azam 28) beat Peshawar Zalmi 169 for 5 (K Akmal 58, Malik 55) by five wickets.

Islamabad United outclassed Peshawar Zalmi by five wickets in the first Eliminator of the Pakistan Super League on Thursday. 

The Sherus were on a three-match losing streak but bounced back strongly with this victory.

Peshawar reached a competitive 170-run target in the stipulated 20 overs after winning the toss and elected to bat. 

Opener Kamran Akmal struck a blistering 58 runs that included seven boundaries and two sixes. 

Shoaib Malik also contributed a half-century to help his side post a good total. 

However, their efforts were in vain as Islamabad reached the total in their final over with three balls to spare. 

Alex Hales hit 62 runs while Shadab Khan and Azam Khan also contributed.

With the Sherus needing ten from five balls after Benny Howell dismissed Azam, Peshawar looked to have made a way back in the game. 

However, Liam Dawson struck a superb six and a boundary from his first two balls to finish things off for Islamabad. 

Shadab Khan’s side will now face Lahore Qalandars in Eliminator two of the Pakistan Super League on Friday. 

Islamabad will be looking to win their third PSL crown after they finished fourth in the table, winning four of their ten matches.

See the PSL 7 schedule for all match dates and our live cricket streams page for information on finding the best cricket streaming site for you.