San Francisco Unicorns Beat Washington Freedom By Eight Wickets

India-West News Desk

OAKLAND, CA-The San Francisco Unicorns chased down 191 in just 15.1 overs to beat Washington Freedom by eight wickets in the final Oakland-leg match of Major League Cricket.

The chase was built around a blistering opening stand between Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Finn Allen, who added 102 runs in just 5.4 overs to put the result virtually beyond Washington Freedom’s reach.

Pretorius led the charge with 66 off 26 balls, racing to a 16-ball half-century to equal the record for the fastest fifty in Major League Cricket history. Allen matched the tempo with 45 from just 18 deliveries.

Both openers were dismissed in the eighth over, but by then the chase was firmly under control. Matthew Short remained unbeaten on 34, while Aaron Hardie finished on 42 not out as the Unicorns reached 193/2 with 29 balls to spare. Nikhil Chaudhary claimed the lone breakthrough after the opening stand, returning figures of 1/29.

Earlier, Washington Freedom elected to bat and posted 190/4, thanks largely to an unbeaten 83 from Andries Gous. The wicketkeeper-batter struck seven sixes in his 50-ball innings to anchor the total.

Mitchell Owen gave Freedom an aggressive start with 39 off 20 balls before Ghulam Mudassar dismissed him. After captain Steven Smith was bowled by Haris Rauf for three, Gous rebuilt the innings through partnerships with Owen, Mark Chapman and Nikhil Chaudhary, who contributed 32 off 19 balls before falling to Brody Couch.

Washington Freedom’s total proved insufficient after the Unicorns’ explosive start effectively settled the contest during the powerplay. For the Unicorns, Mudassar finished with 1/29, Couch took 1/28, and Short returned economical figures of 1/12.

Brief scores: Washington Freedom 190/4 in 20 overs (Andries Gous 83*, Mitchell Owen 39, Nikhil Chaudhary 32; Ghulam Mudassar 1/29, Matthew Short 1/12, Brody Couch 1/28) lost to San Francisco Unicorns 193/2 in 15.1 overs (Lhuan-dre Pretorius 66, Finn Allen 45, Aaron Hardie 42*; Nikhil Chaudhary 1/29) by eight wickets.