All eyes were on Nicholas Pooran at Church Street Park in Morrisville as the West Indies wicketkeeper-batsman continued his form from the 2023 edition. His unbeaten 62 off just 37 balls helped MI New York chase a total of 109 runs in just 14.2 overs.
With the first wickets of Ruben Clinton (6) and US team captain Monank Patel (8), the early momentum seemed to be in favor of the Seattle Orcas. Cameron Gannon was the main bowling aggressor, getting both batsmen out in the third over and giving his team a ray of hope.
But then, Pooran proceeded to hit Gannon for two sixes and as many fours in his next over. This turned the tide in favor of MI New York.
Ultimately, Pooran's powerful abilities proved to be too much for the Seattle Orcas. They also got the wickets of Shayan Jahangir (3) and Tim David (12), but left-hander Pooran and compatriot Kieron Pollard (8*) took their team over the finish line for their first victory of MLC 2024.
Earlier in the day, the skills of the MI New York players were on display as they defeated the Seattle Orcas by just 108 runs. Rashid Khan and Trent Boult picked up three wickets each, never allowing their opponents to adjust to the match.
New Zealand's star pacer Boult made an early opening breakthrough on himself, sending Nauman Anwar back to the pavilion to duck. The Pakistan batsman's last attempt to cut the ball caught a weak edge that traveled to the wicketkeeper and eventual match winner, Pooran.
With Quinton de Kock (5) still in the crease, the Seattle Orcas could still make a competitive score, but Boult also removed him in the next over. His attempt to hit the ball down the leg side was met with an upper edge, and Pooran did well to go under it and send De Kock back to the pavilion.
From then on, MI New York was in the driver's seat, getting regular wickets. For the Seattle Orcas, Shubham Ranjane finished as the highest run-getter with a tidy innings of 35 runs in 31 balls. Finding the boundary regularly, Ranjane proved to be a threat before attempting to hit Rashid Khan for six consecutive sixes, but he missed in his second attempt and hit the ball to Tim David instead.
Harmeet Singh, who recently featured for the United States in the T20 World Cup, played a 20-run cameo as the team set a target that was eventually chased down by the defending champions with 34 balls to spare.
Brief Scores: Seattle Orcas 109 in 19.1 overs (Shubham Ranjane 35, Harmeet Singh 20; Rashid Khan 3/22) lost to MI New York 111/4 in 14.2 overs (Nicholas Pooran 62, Tim David 12, Cameron Gannon 2/40) for six wickets.
With the first wickets of Ruben Clinton (6) and US team captain Monank Patel (8), the early momentum seemed to be in favor of the Seattle Orcas. Cameron Gannon was the main bowling aggressor, getting both batsmen out in the third over and giving his team a ray of hope.
But then, Pooran proceeded to hit Gannon for two sixes and as many fours in his next over. This turned the tide in favor of MI New York.
Ultimately, Pooran's powerful abilities proved to be too much for the Seattle Orcas. They also got the wickets of Shayan Jahangir (3) and Tim David (12), but left-hander Pooran and compatriot Kieron Pollard (8*) took their team over the finish line for their first victory of MLC 2024.
Earlier in the day, the skills of the MI New York players were on display as they defeated the Seattle Orcas by just 108 runs. Rashid Khan and Trent Boult picked up three wickets each, never allowing their opponents to adjust to the match.
New Zealand's star pacer Boult made an early opening breakthrough on himself, sending Nauman Anwar back to the pavilion to duck. The Pakistan batsman's last attempt to cut the ball caught a weak edge that traveled to the wicketkeeper and eventual match winner, Pooran.
With Quinton de Kock (5) still in the crease, the Seattle Orcas could still make a competitive score, but Boult also removed him in the next over. His attempt to hit the ball down the leg side was met with an upper edge, and Pooran did well to go under it and send De Kock back to the pavilion.
From then on, MI New York was in the driver's seat, getting regular wickets. For the Seattle Orcas, Shubham Ranjane finished as the highest run-getter with a tidy innings of 35 runs in 31 balls. Finding the boundary regularly, Ranjane proved to be a threat before attempting to hit Rashid Khan for six consecutive sixes, but he missed in his second attempt and hit the ball to Tim David instead.
Harmeet Singh, who recently featured for the United States in the T20 World Cup, played a 20-run cameo as the team set a target that was eventually chased down by the defending champions with 34 balls to spare.
Brief Scores: Seattle Orcas 109 in 19.1 overs (Shubham Ranjane 35, Harmeet Singh 20; Rashid Khan 3/22) lost to MI New York 111/4 in 14.2 overs (Nicholas Pooran 62, Tim David 12, Cameron Gannon 2/40) for six wickets.
