A PAKISTAN Super League season that had to be halted and then restarted, losing some star power in the process, delivered the most gripping climax. The numbers speak for themselves: Lahore Qalandars’ incredible chase saw them break the record for achieving the highest target in a final of a Twenty20 tournament. And in an intriguing final — that went down to the penultimate ball — the Qalandars found new heroes. Chief among them was Pakistan-born Zimbabwean Sikandar Raza. Raza was on national duty, playing for Zimbabwe in a Test against England in Nottingham that finished only on Saturday. He made a mad dash to Lahore, arriving 10 minutes before the toss in Sunday’s final and duly hit the winning runs after a late blitz. Then there was Kusal Perera, the Sri Lankan who only came into the Qalandars side for their last four matches of the season after their big-name foreign players refused to return after the PSL’s week-long postponement due to the India-Pakistan conflict. After his half century in the eliminator against Islamabad United took Qalandars to the final, Perera was at it again with a nerveless 62 off just 31 balls. Skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi led from the front, getting back to his lethal best with the ball while Mohammad Naeem and Abdullah Shafique made valuable contributions with the bat.

All in all, the Qalandars won as a team, their players turning up at clutch moments to deliver their third PSL title in four years. For the Gladiators, it was a game they let slip after being the best team throughout the tournament. They had Qalandars on the ropes with 57 runs needed off the last 20 deliveries, only to lose their heads as Perera and Raza launched a stunning late charge. The Gladiators showed they are a team primed to end their trophy drought and that they will be back. The grandstand finish, meanwhile, means fans can’t wait for the next season of the PSL to begin.

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2025