Watch: Wahab Riaz kisses Martin Guptill after dismissing during Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators PSL match
Peshawar Zalmi’s Wahab Riaz kissed the helmet of Quetta Gladiators’ opening batter Martin Guptill after taking a caught and bowled chance in the Pakan Super League(PSL) game on Wednesday.
Guptill looked in ominous form scoring 21 runs off just eight balls but perished in the fourth over of the innings when he tried to pull the fifth ball of the over Riaz. The ball went up in the air the Zalmi pacemen gobbled it up and gave kisses to the helmet of Guptill embracing the innings.
Despite the early breakthrough, Zalmi could not defend a mammoth 241 runs on the board. Jason Roy opening for the Gladiators smacked 145 runs off just 63 balls. He scored 20 boundaries and five mammoth sixes in the match-winning knock.
“I got this”, said @WahabViki #SabSitarayHumaray l #HBLPSL8 l #PZvQG pic.twitter.com/K0WIMaklHT
— PakanSuperLeague (@thePSLt20) March 8, 2023
“Just went out there and had some fun. Had to go hard from ball one, on that wicket and with these boundaries, it was a hell of a lot of fun. It was one of those days, it came off, as extremely happy. On pitches like these, you have to play proper shots, very tough for the bowlers. This gives us something to smile about, we have got the players but this tournament we have come up short. Really up there, especially in T20 cricket, it does not happen that often and I will cherish every moment,” the English opener said after receiving the Player Of the Match award.
In the first innings, Zalmi’s skipper Babar Azam scored an impressive century however, his heroics went in vain as his side lost eight wickets. “Jason Roy changed the game totally. Bowling was not up to the mark, what we discussed we did not execute. Having one more spinner wouldn’t have helped as the pitch was great. We wanted to carry on with the same combination from last game. The way Saim Ayub started, it helped carry on the momentum, as a youngster he is improving day day and it’s good for Pakan cricket. As a professional, you need to identify a few things and we will sit and discuss what went wrong. We have back-to-back games now and we want to come back,” he said after the game.