Islamabad (Sports Desk): Another closely fought match in the ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League (GSL) saw Lahore Qalandars defeat Victoria by 10 runs in Providence.
The Australian outfit had looked the side to beat after they won their first two matches in style but they were undone by an impressive Qalandars display with bat and ball with Tabraiz Shamsi's spell the difference between the two sides.
Victoria won the toss and captain Corey Anderson chose to insert the opposition. Mirza Baig played an anchoring role from the top of the order, accumulating 39 from 36 balls to set the foundation for a decent total.
Anderson shuffled his pack and used a total of seven bowlers, it proved an effective tactic as the Qalandars batting card never managed to pull away, Mohammad Faizan was run out for 25 off 21, Tom Abell and Mohammad Akhlaq made 17 and 26 respectively and were the only other contributions of note.
Qalandars captain Carlos Brathwaite fell for a golden duck after seeing his stumps splattered by Jackson Smith, Smith picked up three scalps and was joined in the wickets by the impressive Dominic Drakes. Drakes also collected a trio of wickets whilst stitching together 14 dot balls in his four overs to finish with a frugal economy rate to boot.
Victoria needed 140 runs to win after dismissing the Qalandars for 139 but after a confident opening stand of 67 between Blake Macdonald and Joe Clarke they then lost regular wickets over their remaining overs.
Tabraiz Shamsi was the pick of the bowlers for Qalandars, the slow left arm wrist spinner proved nigh on unplayable on the night, taking 3-11 off four overs that included an unbelievable 16 dot balls and not a single boundary being hit off him in a well deserved Player of the Match performance.
Karima Gore provided resistance for Victoria but when he fell for 25 off 22 at the start of the 19th over it meant his side were down to their last pair.
12 runs played one wicket in the final over, Faheem Ashraf sealed the win by cleaning up Jackson Smith with his third delivery.
The result sees things tighten up in the GSL table with Qalandars, Victoria and Guyana Amazon Warriors all on four points with two wins and a loss apiece. The next round of matches will prove crucial in deciding who makes the final.
