Sikandar Raza lands in Pakistan ten minutes before PSL final toss; three hours later helps Shaheen Afridi lift title
Sikandar Raza lands in Pakistan ten minutes before PSL final toss; three hours later helps Shaheen Afridi lift title
Zimbabwe all-rounder Sikandar Raza played an unbeaten cameo of 22 runs off seven balls, including two fours and two sixes to help Lahore Qalandars win the tenth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) on Sunday. The right-hander batted at a strike rate of 314.29 to help the Shaheen Shah Afridi-led side chase down 202 with six wickets in hand and one ball to spare.
This is the third time in the history of the PSL that Lahore Qalandars have walked away as the winners of the tournament. Their previous two wins had come in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons.
The winning runs were hit by Sikandar Raza, who had landed in Pakistan just ten minutes before the toss for the PSL final
Just 24 hours before the PSL, Sikandar Raza was at Trent Bridge, trying to help Zimbabwe avoid an innings defeat against England. He scored 60 runs in the second innings of the one-off four-day Test. However, his dismissal paved the way for an easy and comprehensive England win.
Just hours after the conclusion of the one-off Test, Sikandar Raza got on a plane to travel to Lahore – the destination for the PSL final. Lahore Qalandars had prepared two team sheets for the PSL final, one with Raza and one without him.
Had Sikandar Raza not arrived back in time or the Test match between England and Zimbabwe had gone into the fourth day, Lahore Qalandars would have played Shakib Al Hasan.
When the toss for the PSL final between Lahore and Quetta happened at the Gaddafi Stadium, Sikandar Raza had landed in Pakistan but he still hadn’t reached the ground.
Despite his not reaching the ground, he was still named in the Qalandars squad.
Speaking about his last 24 hours, Raza, in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), said, “I know the team truly wanted me here, given the efforts the owners and the captains went through over the last 24-36 hours to get me here. If I tell you, it’s unbelievable. Bowled 25 overs in the Test the day before yesterday, batted for 20 overs yesterday. Had dinner in Birmingham, breakfast in Dubai, drove to Abu Dhabi for lunch, took a flight and had dinner in Pakistan.”
“I guess this is the life of a professional cricketer and I’m truly humbled and blessed to have that life,” he added.
Shaheen Shah Afridi dropped from the T20I squad
Speaking of Shaheen Shah Afridi, he might have led Lahore Qalandars to their third PSL title, but the pacer will miss the T20I series against Bangladesh after being dropped from the squad owing to poor performances in the last few international matches.