Washington Freedom convincingly beat the San Francisco Unicorns to book their place in this year’s Major League Cricket final with the elimination of MI New York in the first playoff against Texas, where the competition will crown a new winner this year. And given their stellar run in the season, where they finished on top, it seems the team representing the capital is the team to beat.
It was a dominant show all around by the Washington Freedom. Having restricted the Unicorns to 145 in 19 overs, the Washington Freedom wasted little time in chasing down the score. With destroyer-in-chief, Travis Head led the way with a dominant 77 off 44 inclusive of three sixes and ten fours. When chasing the Washington Freedom, despite losing wickets cheaply, they maintained their rhythm to cruise to a seven-wicket win.
Washington Freedom Bowlers Bowl Out the Unicorns
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In a closely fought season between the two top sides, it was interesting to see who would come out on top. The team winning the toss seems to have the advantage for the most part, and when the Freedom captain Steve Smith won the toss he elected to bowl first. And having done so his decision was backed up well as his bowlers came to the party. A major concern for the Unicorns has been the inconsistency at the top of the order. The rising star player Jake Fraser-McGurk produced another failure managing just 11 off 11 deliveries.
What followed was a tame batting performance by the side from San Francisco as none of the top-order players made an impact. The saving grace came in the form of Hassan Khan who scored 57 off 36 and a resistant 26 off 19 by Corey Anderson. Given the lack of big scores from top-order batsmen, the Unicorns struggle to a 145 before being bowled out in the 19th over.
Dominant Travis Head Leads the Washington Charge
Travis Head is in the form of his life. His remarkable innings in the 2023 World Cup final have set him on a cracking path of batting dominance. Opening the innings Travis Head played an unbeaten 77 off 44 delivers inclusive of 13 boundaries in total. When chasing a modest target like 145, this sort of inning knocked the wind out of the Unicorns’ sails.
The side from San Francisco despite knocking over a few Washington top-order batsmen, were unable to keep a lid on the scoring and when fellow Australia international Glen Maxwell joined the fray, the game quickly got away from the defending side. Maxwell scored a rapid 56 off 23 with five sixes: a strike rate of 234+. This was the last nail in the coffin as the Washington Freedom got home with over four overs to spare.
Washington Freedom into Major League Cricket Final
So we now have a new finalist in the Major League Cricket tournament. The Washington Freedom as the most dominant side this year has booked a deserving spot in the final. The question is can they go one step further and clinch the trophy? They certainly have the team to do so, and all would wait for what becomes the final playoff game between the Texas Super Kings and the Unicorns, who have another shot at qualification.
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