MI London completed a commanding seven-wicket victory over Sunrisers at the Kia Oval on Saturday evening, chasing down a target of 144 with 16 balls to spare. The result was built on a destructive unbeaten partnership between Nicholas Pooran and Sam Curran, who guided the innings home after MI were reduced to 51 for 3 inside the first half of their chase.
Sunrisers Strike Early with the Ball
Sunrisers gave themselves the perfect platform with the ball, handing Brydon Carse the new ball and watching him dismantle MI's top order with ruthless efficiency. Carse removed Will Jacks in the sixth ball of the innings, angling one into the stumps before it seamed away, with Jacks spooning a catch to Benny Howell at cover. Jacks departed for 2 from 3 balls.
Carse maintained the pressure and accounted for Jason Roy in the very next over — on Roy's 36th birthday — as the opener fended a delivery that seamed away sharply and edged to Mitchell Marsh at slip for a duck. That left MI at 8 for 2 after 10 balls, with 136 still required from 90.
Sam Curran and James Vince steadied the innings through a period of careful accumulation, batting through the spin of Benny Howell and Abrar Ahmed without taking undue risks. Matthew Potts and Nathan Ellis kept the pressure on, but the pair managed the situation, rotating strike and picking off boundaries when opportunities arose. Vince contributed 17 from 18 balls before Nathan Ellis bowled him through the gate — taking out off stump — to leave MI at 51 for 3 after 44 deliveries.
Pooran and Curran Put the Chase to Bed
The arrival of Nicholas Pooran shifted the dynamic entirely. Coming in at 51 for 3, Pooran immediately targeted the slower bowlers, hitting Dan Lawrence for a six over the boundary sponge from his very first scoring shot. He took Benny Howell for three boundaries in a single over — a four to fine leg, a six over long on, and another four — announcing himself with a display of controlled aggression that Sunrisers had no answer to.
Pooran reached his fifty from just 19 balls, the fastest half-century in the franchise's history across both their incarnations as Oval Invincibles and MI London. He brought up the milestone with a driven single off Nathan Ellis. The fifty partnership between Pooran and Curran arrived in just 23 deliveries, with Pooran taking particular toll on Abrar Ahmed — sweeping him for six over square leg and then slapping him over long on in successive balls.
Sam Curran, meanwhile, was anything but a passenger. The MI London captain compiled an unbeaten 60 from 39 balls, contributing a six over straight midwicket off Abrar Ahmed and clearing wide long on from a Matthew Potts full toss. Curran's knock underpinned the chase, providing structure while Pooran took the game away from Sunrisers.
A 20,540-strong crowd at the Kia Oval watched Pooran close the match out in the 14th over, launching Matthew Potts beyond mid off for a boundary to seal victory with 16 balls remaining. Pooran finished on 58 not out from 22 balls. Sunrisers, despite Carse's brilliant opening spell of 2 for 18 from 20 balls and Ellis's dismissal of Vince, had no answers once the lights came on and the ball began to slide onto the bat.
The result puts MI London off to a winning start in the competition, while Sunrisers will reflect on a promising bowling performance undone by one exceptional batting display.
