MI London's opening fixture in The Hundred produced a performance of two sharply contrasting halves. A powerplay that left them two wickets down inside ten balls gave way to a second-half surge so emphatic that the 144-run target was overhauled with 16 balls remaining. The result, a seven-wicket win at the Kia Oval, owed everything to the resilience of Sam Curran and the pyrotechnics of Nicholas Pooran.
A Difficult Start
The chase did not begin well for MI London. Brydon Carse, bowling for Sunrisers, found seam movement immediately and punished both openers in rapid succession. Will Jacks, attempting to launch over the leg side, was beaten by a delivery that seamed away and spooned a catch to Benny Howell at cover — gone for 2 from 3 balls. Jason Roy, marking his 36th birthday at the crease, lasted only two balls before edging a Carse delivery that moved away to Mitchell Marsh at slip for a duck. MI London's scorecard read 8 for 2 after ten deliveries.
The asking rate at that point was steep: 136 needed from 90 balls. The situation called for consolidation, and James Vince and Sam Curran provided it. Their partnership was not fluent — Vince in particular took time to find his timing, managing 17 from 18 balls — but it steadied the innings through a phase when Sunrisers' bowlers held the upper hand. Carse's closing spell was miserly, finishing with 2 for 18 from his 20 balls, and Nathan Ellis bowled tidily at the other end.
Curran Anchors the Middle Phase
The dismissal of Vince — bowled by Ellis for 17, beaten through the gate by a ball that nipped in with pace — left MI London at 51 for 3, with Pooran the new batter. At that point, Sam Curran had been the team's steadying force, and he continued in that role as Pooran settled in. Curran's fifty came off 34 deliveries, constructed through a combination of clean driving, a six deposited over straight midwicket off Abrar Ahmed, and sharp running between the wickets.
The left-hander's role evolved as the partnership grew. Initially the senior partner anchoring the chase, Curran became a free-scoring contributor once the asking rate tightened to a manageable level. He hit Potts for a six over wide long on off a full toss, and clipped boundaries with increasing authority. His final figures of 60 not out from 39 balls represented what the commentary described as a "proper captain's knock."
Pooran Finishes the Job
While Curran provided the platform, it was Nicholas Pooran who took the match away from Sunrisers. Arriving at the crease in a position that required MI London to score at a run a ball, Pooran treated the bowling with a ferocity that the conditions — once the floodlights came on and the ball began to skid through — seemed to invite. He hit Howell for three boundaries in quick succession, struck back-to-back sixes off Abrar Ahmed, and launched Potts over deep midwicket from well outside off stump.
The fifty partnership between Pooran and Curran came from just 23 deliveries. Pooran brought up the fastest fifty in franchise history — for MI London and the previous Oval Invincibles — off 19 balls, before finishing unbeaten on 58 from 22 balls. His boundary off Potts sealed the win. The margin of seven wickets and the 16 balls remaining told the story: once this pair were set, the target was never in serious doubt.
