Washington Freedom created T20 history at Oakland Coliseum, chasing down a record total against MI New York in the MLC eliminator. Three centuries were scored i
The Major League Cricket (MLC) eliminator at the Oakland Coliseum saw Washington Freedom achieve the highest successful run chase in T20 history, defeating defending champions MI New York by six wickets. The match on Tuesday was notable for three batters scoring centuries, a first in men’s T20 cricket.
Steve Smith of Washington Freedom scored his fastest career century, reaching the milestone in 40 balls. His innings included nine sixes and helped his team chase down MI New York’s total of 9-266. Smith remained unbeaten on 110 from 48 balls, marking his seventh T20 century.
The chase was anchored by a significant partnership between Smith and local player Andries Gous. Gous scored 132 runs from 51 balls, hitting 12 sixes and 10 fours, with a strike rate of 258.82. He was named Player of the Match for his performance. This knock made Gous the first domestic player to score a century in the United States-based league.
The partnership between Gous and Smith for the third wicket was a crucial 241-run stand from just 89 balls. This stand is considered the highest third-wicket partnership in the T20 format and the joint second-highest for any wicket in men’s T20 cricket. They revived the chase after Washington Freedom had an early setback, losing Mitch Owen for 1 run and Rachin Ravindra for 6 runs, leaving the team at 2-10.
The Ricky Ponting-coached Freedom reached 4-270 with eight balls remaining, surpassing Punjab Kings’ 265 from earlier this year as the highest successful chase in all men’s T20 cricket. Glenn Maxwell hit the winning runs with a swept six in the penultimate over, securing the victory for the 2024 MLC champions.
Before Washington Freedom’s chase, MI New York’s Nicholas Pooran had scored a 31-ball century, which was the fastest century in Major League Cricket history and the equal sixth fastest of all time in T20s. Pooran’s innings included 13 sixes. He, along with Kieron Pollard, who scored 64 off 25 balls and hit eight sixes, put MI New York in a strong position.
Pooran and Smith also became only the fourth pair of captains to score hundreds in the same men’s T20 game. The match yielded a combined total of 536 runs in 38.4 overs, with the two teams clearing the boundary a record 51 times on the converted baseball field, which has an average boundary size of roughly 65m.
Rachin Ravindra, the New Zealand all-rounder, played a significant role with the ball for Washington Freedom, claiming 4-29. His spell was introduced when MI New York were 211 for 3 after 13 overs, and his wickets in the 14th, 16th, 18th, and 20th overs helped limit MI New York’s total to 266 for 9.
The result means Washington Freedom will now advance to the Challenger final, where they are scheduled to face San Francisco Unicorns. The winner of that match will then proceed to the final on Saturday night to play against Los Angeles Knight Riders in Oakland.
Earlier in the day, San Francisco captain Matt Short’s 94 not out from 62 balls was not enough, as his side fell seven runs short of LA’s 3-187 in the Qualifier.
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Source: cricket.com.au
