MI New York beat Seattle Orcas by six wickets to open their winning account in 2024 Major League Cricket (MLC). Three-fers from Trent Boult and Rashid Khan reduced the oppositions to 108 in 19.1 overs before a Nicholas blitzkreig took centrestage, helping the defending champions win the game convincingly.
Match Summary
- Toss: Kieron Pollard won the toss and elected to field first.
- India Innings: 108/10 in 19.1 overs
- Shubham Ranjane: 35 (31)
- Harmeet Singh: 20 (14)
- Key Bowler: Rashid Khan (3/22)
- South Africa Innings: 111/4 in 14.2 overs
- Nicholas Pooran: 62 (37)
- Tim David: 12 (15)
- Key Bowler: Cameron Gannon (2/40)
Key Moments
- Trent Boult’s new ball mastery:
Eyeying to get off to a dream start, the defending champions won the toss and asked the Seattle Orcas to bat first in Church Street Park, Morrisville. Under favourable conditions, Trent Boult toyed with the opposition top-order batters as he sent Quinton de Kock and Nauman Anwar packing in his first spell itself. He also returned after the 16th over and removed Harmeet Singh who looked to tonk the Kiwi down the ground. Unfortunately, for Harmeet, Tim David at long on is one of the safest fielders and he did not miss it. - Rashid Khan spins web:
One of the best in the spin department, Rashid Khan followed up Boult’s success with the ball with splendid figures. He was introduced in the final powerplay over where Rashid trapped Aaron Jones plumb in front. In his next over, the Afghanistan captain outdid Klaasen for single-digit score. - Shubham Ranjane’s fighting knock:
Ranjane fell short of assistance and tried to negate the bowlers for quite some time. However, he ultimately succumbed to Rashid’s bowling genius as he holed out in the deep after the 15th over, leaving the Orcas in trouble. - MI’s struggle against the new ball:
Similar to their counterparts, the New York side lost their openers early as Ruben Clinton and Monank Patel fell for 6 and 8. After Imad Wasim and Nandre Burger’s decent overs, Cameron Gannon ended up with a double wicket third over, reducing MI to 16/2. - Nicholas Pooran’s blitzkreig:
The southpaw counterpunched the Orcas in his own style. He smashed the bowlers, left, right, and centre, stockpiling 37-ball 62 and steering the side past the finishing line. While wickets fell in regular intervals from the opposite end, Pooran stayed strong, finishing the chase with 34 balls in hand.
Implications and Future Prospects
The Orcas need to get better with the bat in hand. Quinton de Kock, Aaron Jones, and Heinrich Klaasen need to step up while the spinners will need to regulate the middle-overs phase in an even better way.
On the flip side, the New York side might have gone past the finishing line but they have plenty of work to do with the bat. Not a single batter looked in good shape barring Nicholas Pooran. With the ball in hand, they were mesmerising and would look to flourish further. 
Conclusion
The defending champions got off to a flying start against last year’s runners-up. They would be hoping to continue the momentum while Orcas will be looking to bounce back soon.
