MLC 2023 | Playoff Race Heats Up - MI New York Overpowers Washington Freedom by 8 Wickets
Kieron Pollard and Nicholas Pooran had a good partnership in the match (Source: Twitter)
With the league stage of the MLC coming to an end with 2 play off spots up for grabs, MI New York came out victorious against the Washington Freedom in a must win contest. The things did not start well for Washington Freedom with losing both their openers in the powerplay and their score being 46-2 after 6 overs. Things didn’t look so good at the halfway stage as well where they were still struggling at 61-3 after 10.
The knocks of 47 from Phillips and 32 from the Freedom skipper Henriques got them to a decent total of 160. The MI New York openers Shayan Jahangir and Monank patel came all guns blazing in the power play scoring at over 10 runs per over. Even after the two openers were dismissed it was a Trinidadian onslaught with Pooran scoring an amazing 62 and MI New York captain Kieron Pollard’s quickfire 21 from just 10 balls made sure that they chased down the target in 15.3 overs, winning the game by 8 wickets.
Pooran's Explosive Show: WAF Left Stunned
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Pooran's Edged, Mistimed, Beaten & Middled Stats
The innings from Nicholas Pooran did not only secure a much needed victory for MI New York but also made a huge impact on their net run rate and currently have the best NRR in the league. Pooran’s innings of 62 from 33 balls which included 4 fours and 6 sixes made sure that MI New York won the match convincingly. He looked better at the crease with each ball he faced. Throughout his innings he had middled 72.73% of the balls he faced indicating that his timing was impeccable along with the power he generated through his shots.
Of course there were those odd deliveries that were those odd 9% balls which he had mistimed and edged during his innings since he was playing an all out attacking game which can force that thick edge or slices. He was only beaten 3 times in his Innings. This was a display of some ruthless and fearless batting which Pooran is known for where he takes the attack to the opposition and wins games for his side. Through this knock we also didn’t see any chances given by Pooran since he also had brilliant shot selection throughout the innings along with the aggressive approach which defines his game.
Conclusion
In conclusion we can say that the Washington Freedom’s bowling attack didn’t live up to the bowling performances they had shown throughout this tournament but we cannot ignore the inconsistency of their top 4 which put immense pressure on the middle Order batsmen. On the other hand MI New York had nothing to lose and attacked the Washington Freedom bowlers who were not looking good on the day.
This loss did not affect the chances of Washington Freedom much since they have already qualified for the playoffs but it can still affect their top 2 spot. We also have to give credit to the MI New York bowlers who restricted the Washington Freedom to 160 by only conceding 15 runs in the last 5 overs and gave them an opportunity to stay alive in the tournament. With two spots left and three teams in the race and two matches to go the battle of the playoffs is still on.
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