LAHORE: Lahore Qalandars were crowned the champions of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 10 after defeating Quetta Gladiators by six wickets in the final at Gaddafi Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing 202, the Qalandars won the game on the second last ball of the final over, with six wickets in hand and a ball to spare.
This is the third time Shaheen Afridi has led Lahore Qalandars to triumph in the PSL final.
Kusal Perera played a match-winning unbeaten knock of 62 off 31 balls alongside Sikandar Raza, who remained unbeaten on 22 off just seven balls.
The home side faced a crucial setback early in their chase as Fakhar Zaman was dismissed by Abrar Ahmed on 11 off 10 balls.
Abdullah Shafique then joined his opening partner Mohammad Naeem, and the two stitched a crucial 46-run partnership to take Qalandars to 85 in 8.3 overs.
Naeem was dismissed after a well-made 46 off 27 deliveries, while Shafique departed after scoring 41 off 28 balls, with the scoreboard showing 115/4 in 12.3 overs.
Kusal Perera and Bhanuka Rajapaksa then joined hands for a 30-run stand to take the Qalandars to 145 in 16.3 overs.
Rajapaksa fell to Mohammad Amir after scoring 14 off 16 balls, bringing Sikandar Raza to the crease to join Perera.
The two shared an unbeaten match-winning 59-run stand to guide Lahore Qalandars to their third PSL title.
Earlier, Hasan Nawaz scored a quick fifty as Quetta Gladiators posted 201/9 on the scoreboard against Lahore Qalandars in the PSL 10 final.
The Gladiators lost captain Saud Shakeel early in the inning when he was dismissed by Shaheen Afridi for just four runs in the second over of the innings.
They faced another blow in the very next over when Finn Allen fell to Salman Mirza after making 12 off 11 deliveries, leaving them struggling at 21/2 in 3.1 overs.
Rilee Rossouw and Hasan Nawaz then stitched a 38-run partnership to stabilise the innings, however, the former was removed by Sikandar Raza on 22 off just 11 balls.
Meanwhile, Hasan Nawaz continued his stellar performance and completed his third fifty of the PSL 10.
The young batter shared a 67-run stand with Avishka Fernando to help Quetta Gladiators make a comeback in the game.
Fernando fell to Rishad Hossain after making 29 off 22, with the scoreboard showing 125/4 in 12.5 overs.
Shaheen Afridi removed Dinesh Chandimal on 22 off 13 balls, and dismissed Hasan Nawaz for 76 two balls later.
Haris Rauf removed Mohammad Amir and Abrar Ahmed for ducks in the penultimate over.
Faheem then played a late-inning cameo, in which he hit two fours and three sixes.
He was dismissed on the final delivery of the innings after making 28 off just eight balls.
For Lahore Qalandars, Shaheen picked up three wickets, while Salman Mirza and Haris Rauf bagged two wickets each.
Sikandar Raza and Rishad Hossain chipped in with a wicket each.
Lahore Qalandars XI: Fakhar Zaman, Muhammad Naeem, Abdullah Shafique, Kusal Perera (wk), Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Asif Ali, Sikandar Raza, Shaheen Afridi (c), Rishad Hossain, Salman Mirza, and Haris Rauf.
Quetta Gladiators XI: Saud Shakeel (c), Abrar Ahmed, Hassan Nawaz, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Avishka Fernando, Rilee Rossouw, Mohammad Amir, Khurram Shahzad, Faheem Ashraf, Usman Tariq, and Finn Allen.
The Gladiators booked a spot in the PSL 10 final after defeating Islamabad United in Qualifier 1.
Lahore Qalandars first beat Karachi Kings in the Eliminator and then the defending champions in Qualifier 2 to progress to the PSL 10 final.
