Akeal Hosein became the first Quetta Gladiators and sixth bowler overall to take a hat-trick in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) as he decimated the Peshawar Zalmi batting line-up as the Babar Azam-led side went from 157/5 to 157/8. However, Hosein's spell couldn't stop Zalmi from posting a huge score on the board and eventually winning the game as the Gladiators slumped to their third loss of the tournament.
At 157/5 in the 16th over, Zalmi were looking at a total in excess of 200 when Hosein dismissed Aamer Jamal, Mehran Mumtaz and Luke Wood in the space of three balls to dent the Men in Yellow. Hosein first got Jamal caught behind by Laurie Evans before cleaning up Mumtaz. Wood edged straight to the first slip where Gladiators skipper Rilee Rossouw took an easy catch and Hosein was cock-a-hoop as Gladiators had the match by its neck, only for Zalmi to grab it back.
The repercussion of Hosein's hat trick was a Zalmi fan, a young girl, crying buckets as tears rolled down his eyes when the camera panned onto her. Watch the video:
However, her disappointment and agony were soon going to turn into ecstasy as Zalmi scored 39 runs in the remaining 26 deliveries to get closer to 200, finishing just four runs short of the mark. Still, the total looked strong and it proved to be eventually as the Gladiators were skittled out for just 120.
After the 46-run opening partnership between Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel, it came downhill for the Gladiators as none of the other batters could show much resistance. It was a collective bowling performance from the Zalmi outfit as they helped their side register a massive 76-run win and eventually seal the second playoff spot, after Multan Sultans. Zalmi's win meant that the Lahore Qalandars were eliminated from the tournament.
