Islamabad United vs Peshawar Zalmi, June 17, PSL 2021 Match Prediction

Match:  Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi

Date: 17 June 2021

Place (venue): Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi.

Tournament: Pakistan Super League 2021

Format: Twenty20

Caption: Can Islamabad United tackle the challenge of Peshawar Zalmi in this race for playoffs?

Key Stats:

• Hasan Ali is the key bowler for Islamabad United and has taken 10 wickets in the last 6 innings with an economy of 6.33, whereas captain Wahab Riaz is leading Zalmi’s pace attack and has taken 12 wickets from 9 games.
• Islamabad United and Lahore Qalandars have played 13 matches against each other and Islamabad United have managed to win 6 out of those 13 games, with 7 wins to Peshawar Zalmi’s account.
• Out of the last 5 encounters, Peshawar Zalmi have won 4 games, with one game abandoned and not a single game in favour of Islamabad United.

Match Preview

The 26th match of the season will be played between Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi in Abu Dhabi on 17 June. Peshawar Zalmi need a win to remain in the race for playoffs, while Islamabad United will play this game to cement their spot in the top 2.

Currently, Islamabad United have won 3 matches out of 5 and they are 3rd on the points table with 6 points. On the other hand, Peshawar Zalmi have also picked up 6 points in 3 games to be placed 4th on the points table.

Both teams boast a superb pace attack and will try to show their bowling strength to ensure their qualification for the knockout stage.

Islamabad United Preview

Despite the loss against Lahore Qalandars in the last match, two-time champions Islamabad United still have 3 wins to their account from 5 games and they are in the race for being in the top 2. They are 3rd on the points table with 6 points from 5 matches.

In the absence of their batsman Alex Hales, they have built up a new opening pair with the help of Colin Munro and Usman Khawaja. They are still working on this pair as they failed to deliver against Lahore Qalandars. Islamabad United lost the match against LQ on the last ball of the innings while defending 144 runs.

After struggling in the upper order, the lower-order batting lineup handled the pressure well and put 143 runs on the board. They restricted LQ until the last over with a superb bowling attack but couldn’t finish off things as LQ scored 16 runs in the last over to chase down the target. Hasan Ali bowled a brilliant spell of 2 wickets for 27 runs in his 4 overs.

The team has a good bowling attack but now one more pacer, Faheem Ashraf, will miss out on the next few games due to an injury. They have to solve their middle-order batting issues before playing against a strong bowling side like Peshawar Zalmi on 17 June.

Key players for IU: 

Islamabad United’s Probable Playing XI:

Colin Munro, Usman Khawaja, Rohail Nazir (wk), Shadab Khan (c), Iftikhar Ahmed, Hussain Talat, Asif Ali, Hasan Ali, Umar Amin, Mohammad Wasim, Fawad Ahmed.

Peshawar Zalmi Preview

Two-time runners-up and one-time champions of the PSL Peshawar Zalmi are still struggling to make it through to the top 2 but are still in the race for playoffs. Currently, they are placed 4th with 6 points from 6 games.

Despite having a good start with opening bowling, Zalmi managed to put pressure on Lahore Qalandars in the last match. Nevertheless, they lost the momentum in the middle order and conceded 170 runs in 20 overs. All-rounder Fabin Alen took 2 wickets for 36 runs in 3 overs.

While chasing the target of 171, experienced Shoiab Malik scored a superb 73 from 48 balls but unfortunately went out because of the hit wicket. No other batsmen stood up on the crease in this chase and Zalmi ended up on a losing side by 10 runs.

The overall team looks strong with the ball but have to solve their batting issue in the middle as well as a lower batting order. They will try to execute a good fast bowling attack against Islamabad United to continue their race for the playoffs on 17 June.

Top players for PZ:

Peshawar Zalmi’s Probable Playing XI

Kamran Akmal (wk), Haider Ali, Shoaib Malik, David Miller, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Fabian Allen, Wahab Riaz (c), Mohammad Irfan, Saqib Mahmood, Mohammad Imran.

Venue

Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi will host this match. This ground has witnessed many international matches as well as domestic seasons of different countries. The stadium has a capacity of 20,000 spectators.

Toss Info

The ground has benefited both bowlers and batsmen but generally offered a good advantage to bowlers while defending the target. In the last 5 international T20s, the teams batting first have won 5 out of 5 matches. We recommend batting first at this venue.

Pitch and Weather Report

The weather will be clear and sunny on the match day and there will be no chance of precipitation during the match. The temperature is predicted to be in the range of 39°C-29°C.

Our Prediction

Peshawar Zalmi have a very good fast bowling attack and will try to put pressure on the top order of Islamabad United with this unit. In addition, with Shoaib Malik in the middle, they have a strong middle-order batting lineup, whereas Islamabad United’s opening combination is not working that well in the absence of Alex Hales. This will make a huge impact on batting and Zalmi will try to take an advantage of it to win the game. Moreover, historically Peshawar Zalmi have done well against Islamabad United. It would take a tremendous effort from the United squad to beat Peshawar Zalmi.

We predict Peshawar Zalmi to register a win over Islamabad United.

Disclaimer: Our match previews are fully researched but as anything is possible on the match day and by looking at the nature of the game, you are advised to decide for yourself when betting on a team. Thanks.