The veteran all-rounder destroyed the Quetta middle order with his incisive leg-spin bowling at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium to restrict the Gladiators to 129 in 18 overs.

For Quetta, Kiwi all-rounder Grant Elliot was the top scorer with 40 as only four other batsmen managed to reach double figures.

In reply, Peshwar got off to a strong start, with Mohammad Hafeez scoring 36 from 29 deliveries and fellow opener Dawid Malan top-scoring with a brilliant 60 not out from 52 balls.

Peshawar overhauled the victory target with eight balls to spare. Afridi, who was declared the man of the match, was pleased with his performance.

“Quetta is a tough opposition and a victory against such a team is morale boosting. I know my performance is of immense importance for the team, so I want to do as well as I can,” Afridi said.

In the other match of the day, captain Misbah-ul Haq scored a composed 38 from as many balls as Islamabad United overhauled Karachi King’s total of 128 with five wickets in hand. He was well supported by Khalid Latif (33) and Asif Ali (31).

Peshwar top the table with 10 points (five wins and two defeats), while Quetta are in second on 10 points as well, but with an inferior net run rate.

Islamabad United are third with six points (three wins and four defeats) while Karachi Kings (two wins and five defeats) and Lahore Qalandars (two wins and four defeats) are the bottom two teams.

The top four teams move to the qualifying stage.