MI London's first match in The Hundred ended in a seven-wicket victory over Sunrisers at the Kia Oval, but the opening ten balls of their chase gave little indication of what was to follow. Two wickets inside the first ten deliveries left them at 8 for 2 chasing 144, before Sam Curran and then Nicholas Pooran rebuilt and eventually dismantled the target with remarkable efficiency.
An Alarming Start
Sunrisers opted to persist with Brydon Carse for MI London's entire first ten balls, and the tactic nearly paid dividends immediately. Will Jacks, opening alongside James Vince, lasted just three deliveries before edging a seaming delivery to Benny Howell at cover. Will Jacks c Howell b Carse 2 (3b).
Jason Roy, entering on his 36th birthday, fared no better. A second delivery from Carse gained sharp away movement and Roy could only fend to Mitchell Marsh at slip for a duck. Jason Roy c Marsh b Carse 0 (2b). MI London's two specialist openers had contributed two runs between them, and the asking rate had already climbed above a run a ball.
Curran and Vince Stabilise
Captain Sam Curran's response to the early crisis was measured. He and Vince spent a significant portion of the middle overs rotating strike against Matthew Potts, Nathan Ellis, Benny Howell and Abrar Ahmed, picking off singles and the occasional boundary without taking undue risks. Curran himself struck boundaries against both Potts and Ellis in this phase, and a six over midwicket off Abrar's bowling signalled growing confidence at the crease.
Vince, meanwhile, found his touch intermittently — two fours off Potts in the 28th and 29th balls of the innings suggested a momentum shift — but he could not convert his stay into a telling contribution. When Ellis bowled him for 17 with a delivery that nipped back off the surface, MI London were 51 for 3 after 44 deliveries, needing 93 from 56 balls.
Pooran Changes Everything
Nicholas Pooran's arrival at the crease marked the turning point of MI London's chase. He took time to read the surface and pace of the pitch, but once he identified that the slower bowlers were inviting the big shot, he took full advantage.
Against Howell, he struck 4, 6, 4 in three consecutive deliveries to accelerate the scoring. Dan Lawrence's off-spin brought another six and further boundaries from Curran. Then Abrar Ahmed returned and Pooran treated the leg-spinner with equal severity — back-to-back sixes over square leg and long on moved him rapidly toward his half-century.
The fifty partnership between Pooran and Curran arrived in just 23 deliveries, and it was evident from that point that MI London had wrested full control. Pooran reached his fifty from 19 balls — described as the fastest half-century in the franchise's history — before Curran accelerated alongside him. Curran's own fifty came off 34 deliveries, featuring five fours and two sixes, and included a particularly brutal six over straight midwicket off Abrar and a full-toss dispatched over wide long on by Potts.
Closing Out the Chase
With 11 needed from 20 balls, MI London required no heroics to finish. Potts's final over brought the winning runs — Pooran driving beyond mid off to seal a seven-wicket win with 16 balls remaining. Pooran finished on 58 not out from 22 balls; Curran was 60 not out from 39 balls. The pair had added their unbroken stand in 40 deliveries.
For MI London, the win demonstrated the depth of their batting. Even after losing two wickets in their opening ten deliveries, the combination of a patient rebuild from Curran and Vince followed by Pooran's explosive finishing produced a result that, ultimately, was not especially close. Sunrisers had no effective response once the lights came on and the pitch eased.
