The Eliminator 2 match of Pakistan Super League 2023 is scheduled to play between Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi on Friday 17th March 2023 at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.

Lahore Qalandars failed to avail themselves the first chance to reach the final of this tournament as they were beaten by Multan Sultans in a qualifier match. They performed well in this season of the Pakistan Super League and are leading the points table. They played ten league matches with seven wins to their name. They lost just three matches. Now they have another chance to qualify for the final of this season of PSL. Remember that they had played two matches against Peshawar Zalmi where they won just one match.

Peshawar Zalmi did not perform well in league matches. They could manage to win just five out of ten matches. They lost the same matches and are holding the fourth position on the points table. They crossed the first hurdle by beating their favorite team, Islamabad United in Emilinator match. This was a very close match where they won with a margin of just 12 runs. This win boosted the confidence level of this team and we are sure that they will perform well in this match.

Lahore Qalandars came to the qualifier match against Multan Sultans as a clear favorite team to win the match but they totally failed to give the best performance in each and every department of the game and faced a heavy defeat by a big margin of 84 runs where they lost the toss and were asked to field first. The performance of their bowling unit was average as they leaked 160 runs in 20 overs against the strong batting order of Multan Sultans. Lahore Qalandars are known as a strong batting team and they have the best bowlers like Shaheen Afridi, Zaman Khan, David Wiese, Rashid Khan, and Haris Rauf. They were not good in the previous match but we are hoping that they will perform well against Peshawar Zalmi. Haris Rauf proved the most successful and highest wicket-taker from their side with three wickets to his name in four overs against 34 runs.

Rashid Khan had performed well in this tournament and had played a main role in almost each and every win of the team. He was also good in the previous match where he picked one wicket in four overs while he was charged for just 18 runs. Zaman Khan was the other bowler with one wicket to his name in four overs against 36 runs. David Wiese also performed well even though he failed to pick any wicket he proved an economical bowler who leaked just 24 runs in four overs. Shaheen Afridi proved the most expensive bowler in the previous match. Not only he failed to pick any wicket but he also leaked a lot of runs. He was charged with 47 runs in four overs. The batting order of Lahore Qalandars is also strong and they had also performed well in this tournament but they totally failed to perform well in the previous match. Their full team came back to the pavilion on a total of just 76 runs in 14.3 overs while chasing the target of 161 runs. Sam Billings was the highest run-scorer with just 19 runs to his name. Haris Rauf scored 15 runs while David Wiese scored 12 runs. No other batsmen from their side could manage to enter into the double figures. Abdullah Shafique, Shaheen Afridi, Rashid Khan, and Zaman Khan were the batsmen who failed to open the account on the scoreboard.

Peshawar Zalmi had now won two matches in a row after losing their match against Multan Sultans and it this also an interesting point that they had beaten Islamabad United in two matches. They also performed well in this tournament against Lahore Qalandars and we are sure that this match is going to be very interesting. They lost the toss and were asked to bat first in the previous match against Islamabad United. The way how their batting order performed in that match was just outstanding. They scored a total of 183 runs in 20 overs. The top batting order of this team is very strong and they also performed well in this tournament. Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Mohammad Haris, Haseebullah Khan, and Tom Kohler-Cadmore are leading the batting order of this team.

Babar Azam is back to good form after he scored his first century of the Pakistan Super League and now had scored fifties in two back-to-back matches. He was the most successful and highest run-scorer in the previous match with 64 runs to his name on just 39 balls with the help of ten boundaries. Mohammad Haris also had an outstanding performance with the bat and scored 34 runs on just 17 balls with the help of three boundaries and two huge sixes. Saim Ayub also performed well in this tournament and he scored 23 runs. Kohler-Cadmore scored 16 runs while Haseebullah Khan could manage to score 15 runs. The performance of the bowling unit of Peshawar Zalmi was not much impressive even though they defended the target of 184 runs and leaked 171 runs in 20 overs. Salman Irshad was the only successful bowler from their side with two wickets to his name in four overs while he was charged for just 18 runs. Aamer Jamal also picked up two wickets while he was charged with 36 runs in four overs. Azmatullah Omarzai picked one wicket while Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Wahab Riaz, and James Neesham were the bowlers who failed to pick any wicket in the previous match.

Lahore Qalandars had faced Peshawar Zalmi in 17 matches where they won 7 matches while Peshawar Zalmi won 10 matches.

According to today’s prediction, Lahore Qalandars is the favorite team to win this match. There are many factors that make Lahore Qalandars a favorite team to win this match.

• Lahore Qalandars won most matches they played in this tournament
• Peshawar Zalmi also has a strong batting order which is in good form
• The batting order of Lahore Qalandars collapsed in their previous match
• Lahore Qalandars have some best bowlers and all-rounders on their team
• Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi are almost equal in strength

Lahore Qalandars is overall a strong team as compared to the Peshawar Zalmi especially when it comes to batting. The batting and bowling squad of the Lahore Qalandars is strong at least on paper, so the winning chances of today’s match for Lahore Qalandars have been increased. The equation of winning the chances of both teams for today’s match is mentioned as under.

Lahore Qalandars have a 52% chance to win this match
Peshawar Zalmi has a 48% chance to win this match

The toss is going to play an important role in almost all matches of Pakistan Super League season 8. We had seen in the previous editions of this tournament that chase is the best option for both teams at the venue of Multan. Almost 80% of matches had been won by bowling first. According to the toss prediction, the team who will win the toss may choose to field first.

The Eliminator 2 match of the Pakistan Super League season 2023 is scheduled to be held at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. The pitch at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore is known for providing producing high-scoring matches. The pitch generally favors the batter and the ball comes onto the bat quite nicely. The pitch also offers some assistance to spinners as the match progresses. Fast bowlers may get some early swing and bounce especially in the first six overs but as the match progresses, the pitch tends to flatten out. The outfield is usually very fast which makes things easier for the batters to score runs quickly. Overall, the pitch at Gaddafi Stadium Lahore is considered to be a good batting surface with some help for the bowlers.

The weather in Lahore is excellent for this match. Lahore is typically known for pleasant weather and good temperatures ranging from 12°C to 26°C in February. The sky is mostly clear during this month and there is almost no chance of rain. However. The humidity levels can be relatively high, making it feel slightly warmer.

Lahore Qalandars: Fakhar Zaman, Mirza Tahir Baig, Abdullah Shafique, Sam Billings (wk), Hussain Talat, Sikandar Raza, David Wiese, Rashid Khan, Shaheen Afridi (c), Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan.

Peshawar Zalmi: Babar Azam (c), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris, Haseebullah Khan (wk), Tom Kohler-Cadmore, James Neesham, Aamer Jamal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Wahab Riaz, Salman Irshad.

• Date: Friday, 16th March 2023
• Time: 02:00 PM GMT / 07:00 PM LOCAL / 07:30 PM IST

• Stadium: Gaddafi Stadium
• Location: Lahore, Pakistan
• Opened: 1959
• Capacity: 27,000
• Known as: Lahore Stadium
• Ends: Pavilion End, College End
• Time Zone: UTC +05:00
• Home to: Lahore Qalandars
• Other Sports: it is home to Hockey
• Floodlights: Yes

• Total matches: 24
• Matches won batting first: 13
• Matches won bowling first: 11
• Average 1st Inns scores: 160
• Average 2nd Inns scores: 145
• Highest total recorded: 209/3 (20 Ov) by ENG vs PAK
• Lowest total recorded: 101/10 (17.4 Ov) by PAK vs SL
• The highest score chased: 176/8 (19.4 Ov) by PAK vs ZIM
• The lowest score defended: 126/7 (20 Ov) by PAKW vs BANW

Mirza Tahir Baig, Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Sam Billings(w), Hussain Talat, Sikandar Raza, David Wiese, Rashid Khan, Shaheen Afridi(c), Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan, Jalat Khan, Shawaiz Irfan, Ahsan Bhatti, Shane Dadswell, Ahmed Daniyal, Dilbar Hussain, Kamran Ghulam.