LQ vs QG

So that will be all from this contest. More action lined up though from around the world to stay tuned to Sportskeeda for our coverage of it all right here on Sportskeeda. For the moment, this is Sooryanarayanan Sesha taking your leave. Thank you so much for tuning in as I hope you enjoyed this coverage. Good night and take care!

Rilee Rossouw (Quetta Gladiators captain): (Fortunes changing with him as captain?) I don't think so. I think the team is doing really well at the moment. Everyone gets clarity on their role. The boys executed really well. Very happy with how we came out tonight and so happy that Mr. Nafay played an innings of unbelievable note and Saud as well. I'm loving it (captaincy) at the moment, I'm loving the competitiveness. Touchwood, so far so good. It's not the first time I'm involved with them (Shane Watson and Sir Vivian Richards). So good to have them back and so good to be back at Quetta.

Khawaja Nafay is the Player of the Match for his superb unbeaten 60. Here's what he has to say: I just had the match situation in mind and wanted to win the game for the team. I just wanted to play according to the ball. I saw the scoreboard and played accordingly. Thanks to the Almighty for this. I've practiced playing both pace and spin. Special thanks to Nadeem Umar saab, Azam bhai and my coach who helps me practice.

Shaheen Afridi (Lahore Qalandars captain): I won't put the blame on anyone. The overall team performance was disappointing. Our fielding has to improve if we are to go deep into the tournament. We've been dropping too many catches. (On Khawaja Nafay) Even I've come through as an emerging player in the PSL and it felt good to see this young kid play his shots. He's a fearless batter. (On no Rashid Khan) We didn't take wickets in the middle-overs last game either. But our fielding just wasn't good. If you field well we will win matches. Haris is a strong player and he is always positive. Hopefully he keeps backing himself and will come back stronger.

Sarfaraz Ahmed (Quetta Gladiators): Thanks to the Almighty. Very good start for us and the team's combination is really good. Our team management is really good. We have Shane Watson and Shaun Tait who have their own strategies and our captain Rilee Rossouw as well. Akeal Hosein has bowled really well, as have Amir and Mohammad Wasim. (On Khawaja Nafay) He has worked really hard. He put up his videos on Facebook and was then picked to play the BPL last year. After playing in Karachi he has been picked by the Gladiators. If young lads like him play well hopefully they go ahead and do well for Pakistan.

Match Summary: Quetta Gladiators beat Lahore Qalandars by 5 wickets with 5 deliveries to spare!

Khawaja Nafay 60* (31) | Akeal Hosein 2/17 (4)
Sahibzada Farhan 62 (43) | Sikandar Raza 1/25 (3)

The PSL is known to throw a number of young, unheralded names into the spotlight. Tonight, that tag belongs to Khawaja Nafay. An outstandingly orchestrated chase by the 22-year old from Karachi as he steers the Quetta Gladiators to their second win on the bounce and their first ever win over the Lahore Qalandars in Lahore!

188 was chaseable on this flat track and the way Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel took off, it was evident that the Lahore Qalandars would find life difficult with the ball. It didn't help that they were incredibly lackadaisical on the field with Roy handed a couple of lives and the fielders slacking in general. Another flyer saw the Gladiators pile up 61 in the powerplay and they were always on course to get the job done.

It took a scorcher from Zaman Khan to york Shakeel before Roy was castled by Sikandar Raza. But skipper Rilee Rossouw kept the tempo going and the mandate was clear - the Gladiators were not going to buckle down and were going to throw one punch after another at the defending champions. Khawaja Nafay was the show-stealer though - even as Rossouw perished, the former used the pace of Haris Rauf to great effect and placed the ball brilliantly while running like a bullet between the sticks.

Simply put, it was a chasing masterclass even as the more experienced campaigners perished around him. The Gladiators were always ahead of the eight-ball as Nafay's maiden PSL fifty ensured that the result was never in doubt. And fittingly, he scored the winning runs to wrap things up for the Gladiators, making it two in two for the team! Lots to ponder though for the Qalandars, whose title defense has begun in disappointing fashion with consecutive losses.

19.1 Zaman Khan to Khawaja Nafay, FOUR! DONE AND DUSTED! How fitting is it that this young prodigy seals the deal! The yorker goes wrong as it ends up as a full toss on the pads. Nafay whips it past short fine leg as it rockets away to the fence. A huge roar from the young lad as Quetta Gladiators beat Lahore Qalandars by 5 wickets!

This game will go into the last over but the Gladiators are just one strike away from making it two wins out of two. What a professional chase this has been by the visitors! Quetta Gladiators require 4 runs to win off the last over!

18.6 Shaheen Afridi to Khawaja Nafay, low full toss at the stumps. Nafay flicks it to mid-wicket and scurries across for a dicey run. A direct hit could have had him in trouble!

18.3 Shaheen Afridi to Khawaja Nafay, back of a length as it rises on Nafay. Hops back to fend it behind square on the leg-side despite the awkward bounce on it

18.2 Shaheen Afridi to Akeal Hosein, full and well outside the off stump. Hosein backs away and jams his bat down to squeeze it out to deep point

18.1 Shaheen Afridi to Akeal Hosein, JUST OVER! Full around the off stump. Hosein slices it just over the leap of backward point as it trickles into the deep. Third man covers good ground and keeps it inside the ropes

Just the formalities remain you'd think although with Shaheen and Zaman having an over each up their sleeve, this game may not be over just yet. Given how their bowling has endured contrasting fortunes thus far, one wonders if Zaman ought to have bowled the previous over ahead of Rauf.