The rhythm of the everyday

The Pakistan-born off-break bowler and lower-middle-order batter took one wicket and scored 22 runs off seven balls as Lahore chased a target of 202 with one ball to spare.Lahore’s run chase was largely built around Kusal Perera’s 62 runs, with support from top-order batters Mohammad Naeem and Abdullah Shafique, but it was Raza’s whirlwind journey from the United Kingdom to Pakistan and his subsequent role in hitting the winning runs that stole the show and Lahori hearts.

The 39-year-old recounted his last 24 hours by saying he had “dinner in Birmingham, breakfast in Dubai, lunch in Abu Dhabi and flew straight to Lahore for the PSL final”.Raza bowled 25 overs in the Test on Friday and batted for 20-plus overs on Saturday before leaving for Pakistan.“To have a victory like this, I just have no words,” he said after the match.

The hosts finished on 204-4 from 19.5 overs to lift their third PSL trophy in four years, making Shaheen Shah Afridi the only captain to win three PSL titles.Earlier, Quetta posted a formidable total of 201-9 in their 20 overs as young batter Hasan Nawaz scored 76 runs off 43 balls and Faheem Ashraf cracked three sixes and two fours in an innings of 28 off eight balls.

Afridi was the pick of the Lahore bowlers, taking 3-24 in his four overs.

Perera was named player of the match for his instrumental innings that kept Lahore in the match until the last over.“The system of open global trade that, while not perfect, has helped to deliver prosperity for Canadians for decades, is changing,” Charles acknowledged early on. “Canada’s relationships with partners are also changing.”

But moments later, Charles hailed shifting Canada-US ties as an example of the new opportunities created by change, in his only direct reference to Trump.“The prime minister and the president of the United States, for example, have begun defining a new economic and security relationship between Canada and the United States,” he said, “rooted in mutual respect and founded on common interests to deliver transformational benefits for both sovereign nations.”

In striking that balance, the speech was “actually quite remarkable”, historian Vovk said.“There was really that emphasis on cooperation between Canada and the United States,” he said. “I think there was a lot in that speech that Donald Trump should or will likely be happy about.”