Washington Freedom and San Francisco Unicorns squared off in the Major League Cricket (MLC) 2023’s eleventh game at Church Street Park. A thrilling match between the two teams was put in motion when the Unicorns won the toss and decided to bowl.
In their allowed 20 overs while batting first, the Washington team amassed a respectable total of 133/8. Many batters participated in their innings, with Moises Henriques (30) and Obus Pienaar (29) topping the way. They had the assistance of Andries Gous (23) and Marco Jansen (19), who contributed significant runs to raise the team’s total.
Haris Rauf’s 4-over bowling session for the Unicorns produced three wickets for 20 runs, demonstrating the effectiveness of their disciplined bowling attack. With two wickets each, Liam Plunkett and Marcus Stoinis severely slowed down Freedom’s scoring rate.
The Freedom bowlers put up a valiant fight against the Unicorns as they attempted to hit 134 for win. Corey Anderson put in a heroic effort, scoring 34 runs off just 34 balls, but the Unicorns were unable to form partnerships or keep the scoreboard moving. Freedom’s star performer, Saurabh Netravalkar, caused mayhem with his outstanding bowling performance. He turned the game in his team’s favor with a spectacular 6-wicket haul for just 9 runs in 3.5 overs.
The innings of the Unicorns sputtered as they were dismissed for 103 runs in 19.5 overs, falling 30 runs short of the mark. The batting struggles of the Unicorns were further exacerbated by the vital wickets taken by Akeal Hosein, Marco Jansen, and Anrich Nortje.
Netravalkar was named “Player of the Match” for his outstanding bowling effort. He actually contributed significantly to Freedom’s victory.
With this victory, Washington Freedom moves into first place, joining Seattle Orcas: Cricket #MLC2023 #CricketTwitter https://t.co/3Zhmsh6ccF#WAFvSFU pic.twitter.com/6NxCYSf0Ig
on July 23, 2023, CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ)
Henriques’ Freedom and Seattle Orcas both made the playoffs thanks to this victory. The Unicorns, on the other hand, are still in fourth place in the standings and must win their final game to have a chance to advance to the playoffs.
