Babar Azam played the winning goal for Peshawar Zalmi against the Quetta Gladiators at the National Stadium in Karachi last night. Riding on Babar’s unbeaten knock of 71 runs, Zalmi registered their sixth win in the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) season to continue the unbeaten streak.
After the match, PSL CEO Salman Naseer was captured making the traditional gesture to ward off the ‘evil eye’ towards Peshawar Zalmi captain Babar Azam. It didn’t take long for the moment to attract the attention of cricket fans on social media platforms.
PSL CEO Salman Naseer performed evil eye protection ritual for Babar Azam
Babar Azam remains a superstar in Pakistan. No matter what his form, Pakistan cricket fans are always eager to see the batsman in action. Of late, the top-order batsman has had to endure a lot of criticism for his batting style in the Twenty20 format.
PSL CEO Salman Naseer warded off the evil eye of Babar Azam. 💛
– A fun interaction after the game. 😄 pic.twitter.com/gSOqj55RTZ
—Salmán. (@TsMeSalman1_) April 15, 2026
Along with multiple disappointing knocks, his strike rate in the format becomes one of the topics of discussion. Even in the ongoing PSL 2026 season, Babar had to face questions related to his low strike rate.
Against the Quetta Gladiators, Peshawar captain Zalmi played the knock of 71 runs at a strike rate of 139.22. The 51-ball innings was decorated with ten 4s. With 8 wickets in hand and 9 balls to spare, Zalmi claimed the target of 155 with ease.
Azam silenced critics who pointed out the batsman’s strike rate.
Despite the criticism, Babar Azam continues to dominate among international stars in PSL history, achieving several important milestones in this year’s edition. in the 11th edition of PSL, the top opener has engraved his name in the history of the league by securing 4,000 runs and becoming the fastest player to reach 12,000 runs in T20 cricket.
Before the match against Quetta Gladiators, in a press conference, Azam had to explain his batting style in the shortest format of the game, where most batsmen try to perform with an elusive strike rate.
The 31-year-old explained that his batting style and stroke depend on the match situation. Your priority as a batsman is to assess the situation, rather than displaying a pure attacking approach instantly.
The batsman explained his batting style in T20
“You have to play differently with different numbers. At that time, you also have to look at the scoreboard to choose what kind of base to play, and the hitting percentage also creates a lot of fuss. I think you have to evaluate the conditions first,” Babar Azam told the media.
“You have to appreciate that every day the wicket is not the same. You cannot play every day in the same way. You will face challenges; the rival team also comes with their duties and you cannot play your favorite shots freely. One good day, things will fall into place, otherwise you will have to work hard to achieve it,” Peshawar captain Zalmi further stated.
After defeating the Quetta Gladiators, Zalmi remains at the top of the points table after playing 7 matches. With 6 wins and one game annihilated, Zalmi has 13 points and a net run rate of +2,404.
Read More: PSL 2026 becomes a laughingstock as Babar Azam’s Peshawar Zalmi makes a comical mistake