“MI franchises are never really out of the tournament, until and unless the last league‑stage match is played,” insisted captain Nicholas Pooran as MI New York limped through an uneven season.
On Saturday he received emphatic proof. Veteran all‑rounder Kieron Pollard uncorked a vintage half‑century and marshaled his troops in the field to engineer a tense six‑run victory over the Los Angeles Knight Riders, a result that all but locks MI New York into the 2025 Major League Cricket playoffs.
Pollard’s power play
Sent in on a tricky surface, MI stumbled to 142 for 9 before Pollard imposed order on the chaos. The 37‑year‑old carved 50 from 36 deliveries, a lone four punctuating four towering sixes that rattled the mid‑afternoon crowd. Without his counter‑punch, the visitors might have folded well short of a defendable score.
Chasing 143, LA’s marquee openers Andre Fletcher and Alex Hales labored for timing, and momentum never materialized. Unmukt Chand scratched his way to a curious 59 off 48 balls before sacrificing himself—retired out—to accelerate the pursuit. It scarcely mattered.
Pollard returned for the penultimate over, removing Sherfane Rutherford, and left the Knight Riders needing 16 from six balls. Andre Russell and Jason Holder could manage only 10; MI’s bowlers, immaculate at the death, clinched the match with room to spare.
Selfless Du Plessis lifts Super Kings
In the evening fixture, the Texas Super Kings routed the Seattle Orcas by 51 runs, delivering MI New York further comfort in the table. Skipper Faf du Plessis demonstrated supreme team instinct, retiring himself out on 91 off 52 to give his middle order the final over. Shubham Ranjane embraced the invitation, finishing unbeaten on 65 off 41 and carrying Texas to a formidable 188 for 4.
Seattle’s reply was a familiar tale of frailty. David Warner and Shayan Jahangir fell early; Kyle Mayers flickered briefly with 35 from 28. The chase, as ever, revolved around Shimron Hetmyer, but when the left‑hander miscued on 26, the innings unraveled. Adam Milne harvested a clinical 5‑for, snatching three wickets in his final over, while wrist‑spinner Noor Ahmad and left‑arm orthodox Akeal Hosein shared four more. Bowled out for 137, the Orcas were left with only mathematical life.
MI New York now occupy fourth place with three wins from nine matches and a net run rate of ‑0.399. The Orcas languish one rung lower at 3‑7 (‑0.1842). For Seattle to sneak into the postseason, Washington Freedom must thrash MI by an implausibly wide margin on July 9; any MI victory would set up a rematch with Washington in the Eliminator. Barring a miracle, Pooran’s pre‑season faith—and Pollard’s late‑season thunder—have carried the blue‑and‑gold to yet another knockout berth.
