Mitchell Owen's Five-For Stuns Unicorns, Freedom Triumph in MLC 2025 Clash

Mitchell Owen of Washington Freedom celebrates getting the wicket of Brody Couch of San Francisco Unicorns during match 19 of the Cognizant Major League Cricket season 3 between Washington Freedom and San Francisco Unicorns held at the Grand Prairie cricket stadium, Grand Prairie, United States of America (USA). (Sportzpics)

The San Francisco Unicorns' previously unblemished record in MLC 2025 suffered its first defeat, courtesy of a stellar performance by Mitchell Owen of the Washington Freedom. Despite the loss, the Unicorns maintain their lead in the standings, primarily due to a superior net run rate. Owen's remarkable five-wicket haul propelled Washington Freedom to a 12-run triumph in Dallas on Saturday.

Unicorns captain Matthew Short continued his impressive form, spearheading his team's pursuit of a target of 170. After an initial good start, the Unicorns were restricted to 52 for 1 during the powerplay, with very little support from Finn Allen and Jake Fraser-McGurk.

Short found a reliable partner in Sanjay Krishnamurthi, but following Short's dismissal in the 11th over for a blistering 67, the innings began to crumble. The Unicorns' middle order faltered when only 73 runs were needed, losing wickets at regular intervals.

Mitchell Owen then took command of the match, dismissing Short in his opening over and swiftly removing Hassan Khan and Romario Shepherd in quick succession. Supported by wickets from Jack Edwards and Ian Holland, the Unicorns slumped to 113 for 7 by the 16th over.

Owen sealed the victory in the 19th over, dismissing tailenders Haris Rauf and Brody Couch, ending with figures of 5 for 17.

Despite Jahmar Hamilton's unbeaten 31 off 18 balls, Saurabh Netravalkar held his composure in the final over, allowing only 14 runs and securing the win for his team.

Earlier in the game, the Freedom faced an early setback after choosing to bat, finding themselves at 13 for 3 within the initial three overs. Xavier Bartlett's fierce opening spell accounted for Owen (first ball), Rachin Ravindra, and Andries Gous.

Glenn Maxwell fell cheaply, but Jack Edwards and Glenn Phillips revived the innings with a 71-run partnership. Phillips accelerated the scoring during a 31-run stand with Obus Pienaar. Following Phillips' dismissal for a 39-ball 58, Pienaar finished strongly with an unbeaten 37 off 16 balls, alongside Mukhtar Ahmed.

Both teams now hold six wins from seven matches, but the Unicorns possess a significant net run rate advantage of 2.016 compared to Washington’s 0.603.

Brief Scores:

Washington Freedom: 169/6 in 20 overs (Glenn Phillips 58, Jack Edwards 42, Obus Pienaar 30*; Xavier Bartlett 32/4, Romario Shepherd 28/1)

San Francisco Unicorns: 157/9 in 20 overs (Matthew Short 67, Jahmar Hamilton 31*, Sanjay Krishnamurthi 24; Mitchell Owen 17/5, Ian Holland 23/1, Amila Aponso 23/1)