PSL 2020: Key battles as Multan Sultans take on Peshawar Zalmi in first semi-final

Veterans like Shahid Afridi and Kamran Akmal will be up for a fight in Lahore on Tuesday

Peshawar Zalmi's Rahat Ali (L) delivers the ball next to Multan Sultans' Shahid Afridi during the T20 cricket match between Peshawar Zalmi and Multan Sultans at the National Cricket Stadium in Karachi on March 13, 2020.  / AFP / Asif HASSAN
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Multan Sultans shook off years of underachievement as they won all but two of their completed matches in the league phase to top the table in the Pakistan Super League.

As a demonstration of how far they were ahead of the rest, they were the only side – oddly, other than last placed Islamabad United – to finish with a positive net run-rate.

That counts for little now, though, especially after the schedule was rejigged in the wake of the health precautions and travel restrictions related to the coronavirus issue.

Now there are no second chances for the top-ranked team, with just a semi-final and final remaining.

Peshawar Zalmi’s path to the knockout stage has hardly been smooth. They only won four of 10 matches, and their influential captain Daren Sammy switched to a coaching role instead.

Still, though, they know well how to manage the business stage of the PSL, having featured in the past three finals.

KEY BATTLES

Shan Masood v Wahab Riaz

Which is the more unlikely T20 captain? The batsman who was once termed a “Shotless Wonder” for taking 173 balls to score 37 runs in a Test match in Dubai?

Or the emotional fast-bowler who had the armband thrust towards him midway through the tournament when the previous incumbent became the coach instead?

Maybe Wahab doesn’t see himself as a fast bowler, anyway. He did promote himself to number three in the batting order in Zalmi's last match, after all.

But it is surely his impact with the ball which will go furthest to deciding this semi-final.

Zeeshan Ashraf of Multan Sultans who scores 50 off 35 balls, cuts a boundary as Peshawar Zalimi's Kamran Akmal looks on during the Pakistan Super League match at the National Stadium in Karachi, Pakistan, Friday, March 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)
Multan Sultans' Zeeshan Ashraf steers the ball past Peshawar Zalimi's Kamran Akmal. AP

Sohail Tanvir v Kamran Akmal

Two players who have spent much of their careers feeling underappreciated.

Akmal has more runs and more centuries in PSL history than anyone else. He started this competition with a bang, too, with 101 against Quetta in Zalmi’s second match. His pickings have been modest since, though.

Tanvir clearly has appetite for this particular battle. His best figures in the competition were the 4-13 he took against Peshawar in their first league meeting, and he took 3-26 in their second encounter, too.

Shahid Afridi v Shoaib Malik

Two all-rounders who made their international debuts in the 1990s are still going strong.

Sure, there is the odd sign of wear. Afridi’s bowling has not been as penetrative in his pomp while Malik, who was for so long one of Pakistan’s finest fielders, has shelled a number of catches in recent matches.

But Afridi’s late-over hitting has been vital for Multan, while Malik has made three 50s in his past four trips to the crease for Peshawar.

Schedule

Multan v Peshawar, first semi-final in Lahore on Tuesday, 1pm start (UAE time)