MLC 2023 | Washington Freedom vs San Francisco Unicorns: Analytical Preview

image-lkedsdm9Moises Henriques played a brilliant hand against LAKR (Source: Twitter)

With the MLC coming into the business end of the league and the top four yet to be decided, Washington Freedom and the San Francisco Unicorns will battle for the two points to keep them comfortable in the race to the playoffs at the Church Street Park at Morrisville which is scheduled tomorrow. Both these teams are currently in similar positions with 2 wins out of their 3 games with a loss against the Seattle Orcas. The only thing keeping Washington Freedom ahead of the Unicorns is the NRR which only has a difference of 0.143. Which makes this contest exciting.



Bowling Brilliance, Batting Prowess: Unforgettable Duels

With these two teams playing for the first time in the league we might get to see some great Matchups that could unfold in this contest which we will look into.

Stoinis vs Dwarshuis: with Washington freedom struggling with their death bowling this season, it won’t be a bad call to bring the experience of Dwarshuis who has performed well in the BBL. His battle with Marcus Stoinis will be something to look out for. Even though Stoinis has scored 72 runs from the 55 balls he has faced at a strike rate of 173.7 he has been dismissed four times by Dwarshuis.

Finch vs Sangha: Tanveer Sangha has impressed everyone with his leg breaks in the BBL and is yet to get a game in the tournament. The slowness of the Church Street Park could be one of the reasons to bring him in. He has had a good record against the Unicorns skipper Aaron Finch who has so far scored 19 runs off his 18 balls and has been dismissed twice by him.

Finch vs Henriques: Another battle that involves Aaron Finch and what is better than a battle between captains. Finch has enjoyed facing Moises Henriques so far where Finch has scored 39 runs of his 22 balls at a strike rate of 177.3 and has been dismissed only once. Henriques has still been one of the top bowlers for his team this tournament and will be looking to improve that record against a struggling Finch.

Wade vs Hosein: Even though Matthew Wade has not been dismissed by Akeal Hosein so far, in the 14 balls he has faced so far he has been striking at only 128.6 which is below par for a player like him.


Rising to the Challenge: Players in Need of a Step Up

Apart from the players who are performing it is also important for some brilliant players to step up to the plate as well. Aaron Finch has still not found his form in this tournament. He has so far scored 35 runs in 3 matches and has the lowest average and strike rate compared to other batsmen in the side. As skipper it will be important for him to get some runs for his team. Nortje being one of the big names of his team, it is time for him to come back to his best in this tournament. With one wicket in 3 games with an economy of 8.75 he has been struggling to make breakthroughs so far.



Conclusion

With both these sides looking good in this tournament we might be in for a great contest. Both these teams have their own advantages and disadvantages to look at as well. This game will still be important for either side since one more loss for both sides can impact their chances of making it to the playoffs.