Sikandar Raza had an incredible and crazy 24 hours of his life on Sunday, May 25. The all-rounder will pretty sure not forget yesterday's day for a long while, as he was seen first in Birmingham, then a small stopover in Abu Dhabi, and then in Lahore playing the 10th edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL 2025) season. The icing on the cake was the veteran batter had also hit the winning runs for Lahore Qalandars (LQ) to help them win the third title.
Raza's England day ended when he was dismissed for (60) runs in Zimbabwe's one-off Test match against England on Saturday, May 24. Later, the 39-year-old quickly caught the flight to reach Lahore to play the PSL 10 final. Raza took an economic flight from England with a six-hour layover and later took a flight out to Lahore from Abu Dhabi.
In fact, the all-rounder was still reaching the Gaddafi Stadium when his Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi had announced playing for the marquee clash against Quetta Gladiators.
Sikandar Raza opens about the crazy 24-hour ride
“I am here to do a job, and God forbid, if we happened to lose the game, then at least in my heart I knew I was with my brothers,” Raza said following the game. “I know the team truly wanted me here, given the efforts the owners and the captains went through over the last 24-36 hours to get me here. If I tell you, it’s unbelievable.
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“Bowled 25 overs [in the Test] the day before yesterday, batted for 20 overs yesterday. Had dinner in Birmingham, breakfast in Dubai, drove to Abu Dhabi for lunch, took a flight, and had dinner in Pakistan. I guess this is the life of a professional cricketer, and I’m truly humbled and blessed to have that life.”
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Sikandar Raza caps off memorable 24 hours by hitting winning runs for Lahore Qalandars
God could not have planned a better script for Raza, as he ended up being the hero of his team Qalandars. The 39-year-old played a breezy cameo innings of seven-ball 22 runs, hitting two fours and two sixes to close down a steep run chase of 202 runs.
“I tried to take the emotions out,” he said. “I think all the journey and the Test match helped me because I was so mentally and physically drained. All I was saying to myself was just watch the ball. I was blank out there. I wasn’t predicting or thinking where the ball’s going to be and what I’m going to do. All I said was wherever the ball is hit the best shot.”
