MONTE CARLO: Defending champion and top seed Carlos Alcaraz beat Valentin Vacherot 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to end the Monegasque’s fairytale run at the Monte-Carlo Masters and set up a blockbuster final against Jannik Sinner.

Vacherot, who also enjoyed a breakthrough run at the Shanghai Masters in October, kno­cked out Lorenzo Musetti, Hubert Hurkacz and Alex de Minaur on his way to the Monte Carlo semi-finals. The 27-year-old was the first Monegasque player to reach the last four in the Principality.

Alcaraz struck first in the opening set, breaking serve to move 2-1 ahead before sealing the set with an ace.

Just as the seven-times Grand Slam champion appeared to be cruising, Vacherot mounted a spirited fightback and edged ahead 4-3 in the second set. Alcaraz, however, proved too strong, winning three successive games to seal victory.

With the win, Alcaraz became only the third player to reach 10 ATP 1000 finals before the age of 23, joining Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic since the format began in 1990.

With the world number one ranking on the line, Alcaraz said he was excited about facing Sinner for the first time this year.

“I think it’s the dream spot for everyone,” Alcaraz said. “I’m fighting for my second Monte Carlo title; Jannik’s fighting for his first one. It’s going to be a really special one. The world number one is on the line. That makes tomorrow even more special.

“I’m just really happy to win this really difficult match against Valentin. He’s playing great tennis with a lot of confidence right now. Playing in his hometown, it was really tough to deal with.

“For me, I’m really excited about my first meeting with Jannik this year, first final. Let’s see how it’s going to be tomorrow. I’m excited about it.”

Four-times major winner Sinner dispatched German third seed Alex­ander Zverev 6-1, 6-4 in the first semi-final.

Meeting Zverev for a fourth consecutive Mas­ters 1000 semi-final, the Italian produced a near-flawless opening set, racing to a double-break lead before sealing it with a backhand winner.

The second set proved a tighter affair. With the score level at 4-4, Sinner pulled away, breaking Zverev’s serve before closing it out 6-4. The victory extended Sinner’s head-to-head record against Zverev to nine wins and four losses.

Sinner, who won the Indian Wells Masters and Miami Open titles last month, became only the fourth player to reach the finals at Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo in the same season, after Roger Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.

“Every match, every day is different. I’m very happy about today’s performance,” said Sinner. “I felt really solid from the beginning. When you’re a break up straight away, it changes the dynamic of the match. Let’s see what’s coming in the final.”

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2026

KARACHI: Maintaining their impressive run in the HBL Pakistan Super League, Peshawar Zalmi thrashed Lahore Qalandars by 76 runs here at the National Bank Stadium on Saturday to climb to the top of the table and extend their winning streak.

Chasing 174, former champions Qalandars collapsed dramatically to 97 all out in 17 overs, their batting order unraveling against a disciplined Zalmi attack.

The defeat leaves Qalandars languishing in sixth place after completing half their league-stage matches, while Zalmi, unbeaten in several outings, now sit atop the PSL standings with momentum firmly on their side.

Zalmi’s innings was built around a commanding second-wicket partnership between Kusal Mendis and captain Babar Azam.

After Mohammad Haris gifted his wicket early for 18 off 10 balls — toe-ending a cross-bat shot to mid-on off Shaheen Shah Afridi — Mendis walked in and immediately looked at ease.

The Sri Lankan wicket-keeper/batter, fresh from a strong previous outing, played with confidence on a surface that offered grip and occasional slow bounce.

Mendis reached his second successive half-century with a massive six off Usama Mir, finishing with a fluent 74 off 48 balls, studded with five boundaries and four sixes.

His knock featured elegant drives, powerful heaves over mid-wicket and clever lap scoops. Babar, meanwhile, played the perfect anchor, rotating the strike intelligently and providing stability during the middle overs.

The pair added 109 runs for the second wicket before Babar mistimed one to long-on for 43 off 40 balls.

“Next to me was Babar. He batted really well and he gave me a lot of confidence,” Mendis said after the match. “I played my normal game in powerplay. The reason is Babar — I know he has played so many matches in Pakistan, he knows the conditions very well, that’s why I played my normal game. He supported me a lot.”

Zalmi reached 150 for three in the 17th over, but Qalandars fought back strongly in death overs.

Shaheen, leading from the front with the ball, claimed three wickets for 22 in four overs. He removed Haris early, then accounted for Mendis in the 17th over with a well-directed delivery that the batter holed out to long-on.

Shaheen’s final-over yorker also disturbed Farhan Yousuf’s stumps. Mustafizur Rahman picked up two crucial wickets, including that of Michael Bracewell, using his variations expertly to restrict the flow of runs.

Despite the presence of pinch-hitters Abdul Samad and Iftikhar Ahmed lower down the order, Zalmi could not push beyond 173 for seven.

Samad fell lbw for two, while Bracewell’s breezy 21 off 10 ended when he flicked a low full toss to deep square leg. Iftikhar remained not out on seven as the innings closed at a competitive but not daunting total on a tricky pitch.

Usama, one of Qalandars’ spinners, acknowledged the challenge.

“Full credit goes to Kusal Mendis for the way he assessed the wicket, read the conditions, and played accordingly. He played low-risk cricket, which allowed him to set such a big target,” Usama said.

In the chase, Qalandars never got going. Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Naeem started cautiously, but Shoriful Islam drew the first blood, inducing a thick edge from Naeem that was taken at mid-off.

Abdullah Shafique played some crisp shots for his 21 off 15, but Nahid Rana’s express pace produced a spectacular breakthrough, forcing Abdullah into a pull that was swallowed at deep square leg.

Bracewell then turned the game decisively with his off-spin, claiming three wickets for 18 runs in four overs.

He removed Fakhar, who was caught coolly by Babar at long-on; then accounted for Haseebullah Khan, caught by a diving Aamer Jamal and Sikandar Raza, who top-edged to Haris at deep mid-wicket. Bracewell’s variations and flight exploited the conditions perfectly, exposing Qalandars’ fragile middle order.

Sufiyan Muqeem complemented Bracewell beautifully, taking three wickets for 21. His leg-breaks and googlies accounted for Asif Ali, Shaheen and Ubaid Shah.

Nahid’s raw pace added to the pressure, as the speedster troubled batters with his short balls to claim two wickets, including a sharp caught-behind, by a diving Mendis to dismiss Usama.

Dunith Wellalage offered some resistance with 20 off 24, but Aamer sealed the victory by having him caught at deep backward point. Mustafizur remained not out on four as Qalandars’ innings folded well short.

Scoreboard

PESHAWAR ZALMI:
Mohammad Haris c Usama b Shaheen18
Babar Azam c Abdullah b Usama43
Kusal Mendis c Abdullah b Shaheen74
Michael Bracewell c Asif b Mustafizur21
Abdul Samad lbw b Ubaid2
Iftikhar Ahmed not out7
Aamer Jamal c Abdullah b Mustafizur0
Farhan Yousaf b Shaheen2
Sufiyan Muqeem not out1

EXTRAS (LB-2, W-3)5
TOTAL (for seven wickets, 20 overs)173
DID NOT BAT: Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-18 (Haris), 2-127 (Babar), 3-150 (Mendis), 4-153 (Samad), 5-165 (Bracewell), 6-165 (Aamer), 7-168 (Farhan)
BOWLING: Shaheen 4-0-22-3, Wellalage 4-0-40-0 (1w), Ubaid 3-0-29-1, Mustafizur 4-0-30-2, Usama 4-0-39-1 (1w), Sikandar 1-0-11-0

LAHORE QALANDARS:
Fakhar Zaman c Babar b Bracewell21
Mohammad Naeem c Sufiyan b Shoriful1
Abdullah Shafique c Abdul b Nahid21
Sikandar Raza c Haris b Bracewell14
Haseebullah Khan c Aamer b Bracewell3
Asif Ali b Sufiyan0
Shaheen Shah Afridi b Sufiyan5
Dunith Wellalage c Farhan b Aamer20
Usama Mir c Mendis b Nahid1
Ubaid Shah st Mendis b Sufiyan4
Mustafizur Rahman not out4

EXTRAS (LB-1, W-2)3
TOTAL (all out, 17 overs)97
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-4 (Naeem), 2-43 (Abdullah), 3-45 (Fakhar), 4-55 (Haseebullah), 5-56 (Asif), 6-64 (Raza), 7-67 (Shaheen), 8-70 (Usama), 9-75 (Ubaid)
BOWLING: Iftikhar 2-0-15-0, Shoriful 2-0-17-1, Bracewell 4-0-18-3 (1w), Nahid 3-0-15-2, Sufiyan 4-0-21-3 (1w), Aamer 2-0-10-1
RESULT: Peshawar Zalmi won by 76 runs.
MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Kusal Mendis

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2026

DHAKA: Bangladesh named an unchanged squ­ad on Saturday for the first two matches of the upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand, the first announcement by the newly formed selection panel.

The four-member panel, led by Habibul Bashar Sumon, opted to stick with the same group that featured in the ODI series against Pakistan last mo­nth, citing continuity and overall team performance. Bangladesh beat Pakistan 2-1 in the home ODI series.

The selectors also backed out-of-form opener Saif Hassan who managed just 52 runs in three matches in the Pakistan series.

New Zealand will arrive in Bangladesh on Monday for the tour which includes three ODIs and three T20Is.

The opening two ODIs will be held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on April 17 and 20 followed by the third on April 23 at Chattogram.

The T20I series will begin in Chattogram with matches on April 27 and 29, before concluding in Dhaka on May 2.

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2026