The inaugural Major League Cricket 2023 tournament witnessed one of the most fitting climaxes in the T20 franchise cricket league’s history. The tournament saw as many as six teams competing among themselves for the title. However, in the end, only two teams – Seattle Orcas and MI New York made it to MLC 2023 final.
Both teams crossed swords with each other in the MLC 2023 final at Grand Prairie Stadium, Dallas. MI New York skipper Nicholas Pooran won the toss and opted to bowl first. Batting first, Seattle Orcas posted a healthy total on the board as they aggregated 183/9 in their designated quota of 20 overs.
Seattle Orcas’ wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock top-scored with 87 off just 52 balls. He smacked a flurry of nine fours and 4 sixes at a strike rate of 167.31. On the contrary, Rashid Khan and Trent Boult took three wickets apiece. Rashid Khan registered 3/9 in his quota of 4 overs at an impressive economy of 2.20.
Nicholas Pooran dazzles with his incredible 137 in MLC 2023 final and steers MI New York to a title
Chasing 184, especially in a final is not that easy but in reply to Seattle Orcas’ total, MI New York got the job done in 16 overs. They won the game by seven wickets with 24 balls to spare. In fact, MI New York were in a spot of bother after opener Steven Taylor departed for a duck.
Despite being under surreal pressure early on in the game MI New York largely benefitted from the services of their skipper Nicholas Pooran. The left-handed wicketkeeper-batsman took the bowling attack to the cleaners with his incredible batting exploits wherein he hit an unbeaten 137 off 55 deliveries.
— Rahul Chauhan (@ImRahulCSK11) July 31, 2023
He paced his innings with the help of 10 fours and 13 hits over the fence at a strike rate of 249.09 as MI New York won the inaugural edition of MLC 2023 on July 30, Sunday. Seattle Orcas tried their maximum best to stop Pooran but the latter was literally unstoppable as he guided his team to a significant win.
Nicholas Pooran was adjudged the Player of the Match for his scintillating batting masterclass in MLC 2023 final. After receiving the award at the post-match presentation, he said, “Chatting today we spoke about creating history. We lost our captain and a couple of players. At the end of the day, I am proud as everyone contributed. We knew it was a good batting wicket, we were prepared for this moment from a week ago.”
He further added, “We had to be confident and believe in each other. We got over the line today, we were been put under pressure earlier this week. You are going to bat like Nicky P, I told myself and backed my skill. I just had to execute my skills, I have been working on it for the last 5-6 years. It was really special for me. I just want to thank all the fans and supporters, they have been really amazing.”