22 May, 2025 | 12:00 PM
Quetta Gladiators booked their place in the final of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025 with a commanding 30-run victory over Islamabad United in Qualifier 1 in Lahore. An all-round masterclass from Faheem Ashraf, coupled with valuable runs from Dinesh Chandimal and incisive middle-overs bowling, sealed a dominant win for the table-toppers.
Having finished top of the league with seven wins from ten matches, the Gladiators lived up to their billing, posting a daunting 209 for 6 before restricting Islamabad to 179 in response.
The turning point of the match came between overs 12 and 20, when Dinesh Chandimal (48* off 28) and Faheem Ashraf (45 off 23) stitched together a blistering 95-run partnership off just 48 deliveries. Both batters found the boundary with ease, each striking three sixes and four fours.
Chandimal was clinical on the leg side, using his bottom hand powerfully, while also slicing boundaries through a packed off-side field. Ashraf, equally dynamic, punished anything full and wide, sending the ball crashing over the cover region and through midwicket.
Earlier, Finn Allen and Avishka Fernando had provided a brisk start, with each batter scoring at a strike rate well over 150, laying the platform for the explosive finish.
Islamabad United appeared in contention during the first 14 overs of their chase, thanks largely to a 71-run partnership between Sahibzada Farhan and Rassie van der Dussen. Farhan top-scored with a fluent 52 off 35 balls — his sixth T20 half-century — while Salman Agha contributed a quickfire 44 off 26 deliveries.
But once Salman departed in the 18th over with 42 runs still required from 16 balls, Islamabad's chase unraveled. The lower order failed to provide support, and the innings folded in the final over.
While Mohammad Amir (2 for 31) and Faheem Ashraf (2 for 33) were effective, it was offspinner Usman Tariq who delivered the killer blows. He removed Farhan with a mis-hit full toss, before dismissing Salman with a clever wide delivery and later picking up Naseem Shah to finish with figures of 3 for 32 — matching his performance from the previous game.
Usman’s timely strikes ensured there was no late comeback, and he upstaged even the more seasoned bowlers like Ashraf and Abrar Ahmed, who now sit tied as the second-highest wicket-takers in the tournament with 16 wickets each.
With this win, Quetta Gladiators move straight into the PSL 2025 final, while Islamabad United will have a second shot at qualification. They will face the winner of Thursday's Eliminator between Karachi Kings and Lahore Qalandars in Qualifier 2.
For now, the Gladiators look the team to beat — balanced, explosive, and peaking at just the right time.
