WATCH | ‘Calm and composed’ Shaheen Afridi saves Lahore Qalandars from wayward throw to defend PSL title

03/19/2023

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Certain players have a style to keep their calm and composed demeanor on fields which helps them to be superior to others. On Saturday, Shaheen Shah Afridi made headlines for keeping his cool under pressure just when Lahore Qalanders were about to lose the PSL title following a David Wiese blunder.

During the final of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) between Multan Sultans and Lahore Qalandars, Shaheen Afridi did little wrong at Gadaffi Stadium, whether with batting, bowling, or fielding. Coming at No. 7, the 22-year-old scored an unbeaten 44 off only 15 balls, laced with five sixes and two fours to take the Qalandars to 200/6 after they were left reeling at 112/5 in 14.1 overs. Then with the ball, the left-arm quick took four wickets, albeit conceded 51 runs off his four overs.

However, more significantly, what Shaheen did during the last ball of the contest received a lot of praise on social media. The Sultans, led by Mohammed Rizwan, required four off the final delivery, and Khushdil Shah played Zaman Khan between long-on and deep mid-wicket to take at least three runs. David Wiese, placed at long-on, collected the ball properly, but a wayward throw brought fear into Qalandars’ fans' hearts, only until Shaheen’s charisma was on display.

Near the non-strikers’ end, Shaheen put his body behind while collecting the ball at the non-strikers’ end with calmness and went on to break the stumps with the ball in hand, rather than throwing it. The throw, which was way off target, was not at all comfortable to collect, but Shaheen made sure there won’t be any late drama, and as a result, he successfully led the Qalandars to win the title in successive years. Unsurprisingly, Shaheen was named the Player of the Match in the summit clash which will go down as one of the most thrilling finals of all time.

Here's the full drama of the last ball of the PSL 2023 final: