Key match-ups, squad lists, head-to-head record, weather forecast, prediction, odds, form guide and more ahead of the second game of the 2022 Pakistan Super League season
Quetta Gladiators take on Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League.
The game is set for Friday, January 28. The first ball will be bowled at 7pm local time (3pm GMT).
The game will be held at the National Stadium in Karachi.
Rarely does an edition of the PSL pass without one of these two making an impression.
Both have a title each; Zalmi were the 2017 champions while Gladiators won in 2019, but both will have regrets of having not added to that tally.
They've lost five other finals between them, with Zalmi the latest side to come off second best after missing out to Multan Sultans.
Zalmi also had to settle for a runners-up spot in 2018 and 2019 - when they were beaten by their opponents in the opening round.
Gladiators were beaten finalists in the first two editions and haven't been out of the group since they won the competition three years ago.
In fact, apart from in 2020, there hasn't been a final with at least one of these two sides represented.
Last term was one to forget for Sarfraz Ahmed's side as they two eight of their 10 games to finish bottom of the pile.
The Wahab Riaz-led Zalmi were third in the group but won two playoff matches, including over table-toppers Islamabad United, to progress to the showcase final.
Covid-19 has dramatically affected their preparations for the tournament Kamran Akmal and Arshad Iqbal having tested positive on the eve of the tournament.
Furthermore, James Foster has replaced Daren Sammy as head coach.
Shahid Afridi starts what will be his final PSL campaign sidelined with Covid and Gladiators start without England batters James Vince and Jason Roy due to their England commitments.
Ben Duckett on the sweep (Bradley KanarisGetty Images)
Ben Duckett arrives in Pakistan off the back of an encouraging BBL campaign with Brisbane Heat.
He registered 302 runs in 12 innings though concluded the campaign with a pair of single figures scores.
Duckett is an expert sweeper and reverse sweeper of the ball and his favourite shot will likely be out in force again in slightly slower, lower conditions.
Though Matt Parkinson is waiting in the wings for Zalmi, it is much more likely that Usman Qadir will lead the Zalmi spin ranks in their opening game.
Son of Abdul Qadir, who played 67 Tests and 104 ODIs for Pakistan, the leggie is keen to shake the burden that comes with the family name.
The 28-year-old has been teasing a new delivery ahead of this tournament after taking advice from Imran Tahir while at Multan Sultans
“To share the dressing room with Imran Tahir was a blessing for me, he gave me several tips and I have worked on them to improve my skills,” he said.
“It is time for me to apply what I learnt from the South African."
Matches played: 16
Quetta Gladiators wins: 8
Peshawar Zalmi wins: 8
A clear early evening is expected in Karachi, with temperatures dipping to around 20 degrees Celsius for the start of play.
Quetta Gladiators: James Vince, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Jason Roy, James Faulkner, Umar Akmal, Sohail Tanvir, Ben Duckett, Khurram Shehzad, Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, Muhammad Ashar Qureshi, Noor Ahmad, Ahsan Ali, Luke Wood, Ghulam Mudassar, Dan Lawrence
Partial replacements: Will Smeed (James Vince), Ali Imran (Noor Ahmad), Shimron Hetmyer (Jason Roy)
Peshawar Zalmi: Wahab Riaz, Liam Livingstone, Shoaib Malik, Sherfane Rutherford, Haider Ali, Saqib Mahmood, Hussain Talat, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Hazratullah Zazai, Usman Qadir, Salman Irshad, Arshad Iqbal, Sameen Gul, Kamran Akmal, Sirajuddin, Mohammad Amir Khan, Ben Cutting, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Umer (supplementary draft), Sohail Khan (supplementary)
Partial replacements: Pat Brown (Liam Livingstone), Matt Parkinson (Saqib Mahmood), Imam-ul-Haq (Kamran Akmal, Covid-19), Amad Butt (Arshad Iqbal, Covid-19)
Usman Qadir (Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images)
Quetta Gladiators: Will Smeed, Ben Duckett, Shimron Hetmyer, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Iftikhar Ahmed, James Faulkner, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Hasnain, Khurram Shehzad, Sohail Tanvir, Naseem Shah
Peshawar Zalmi: Hazratullah Zazai, Imam-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, Haider Ali, Sherfane Rutherford, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Haris (wk), Amad Butt, Wahab Riaz, Usman Qadir, Pat Brown
Peshawar Zalmi start the game as favourites with the bookmakers offering odds of 8/11 for the win. Quetta Gladiators are rated as outsiders at 11/10.
Both sides start the campaign without some key figures but the feeling is Gladiators are worse off. Zalmi are last season's runners-up and should be able to take advantage.
In Pakistan, games will be on A Super and PTV Sports.
In the UK games will be shown on Sky Sports Cricket (Sky 404, Virgin 504).
In Australia, the games will be shown on Foxtel, Fox Sports and Kayo.
In India, Sony Sports Network carries the broadcast rights.
In the Caribbean, Flow Sports hold the broadcast rights, with Willow TV showing the tournament in North America.
SuperSport will provide coverage in South Africa, while Sky Sport will show the matches in New Zealand.
The PCB has partnered with ICC TV and tapmad TV to broadcast PSL7 in: Andorra, Antarctica, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bouvet Island, Bouvet Island, Brazil, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Chile, China, Christmas Island, Cocos Island, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, East Timor, Ecuador, Estonia, Falkland Islands, Faroe islands, Finland, France, French Guiana, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guyana, Heard Island, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgystan, Laos, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Malaysia, Malta, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Caledonia, North Korea, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vatican City, Vietnam and Venezuela.
The commentary line-up includes Nick Knight, David Gower, Mike Haysman, Pommie Mbangwa, Danny Morrison, Bazid Khan, Waqar Younis, Urooj Mumtaz, Sana Mir, Marina Iqbal and Tariq Saeed. Erin Holland, Zainab Abbas and Sikandar Bakht will present the live coverage.
PSL GUIDES (open in external window in app)
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