San Francisco Unicorns maintained their unbeaten streak in MLC 2025 with a dominant seven-wicket win over Texas Super Kings, chasing down 199 with ease thanks to explosive fifties from Finn Allen and Matthew Short. Their chase eclipsed a brilliant century from Faf du Plessis, who fought a lone battle with a 51-ball ton.
Du Plessis Shines, But Lacks Support
After being asked to bat first, Texas Super Kings put up a solid total of 198 for 5, largely on the back of du Plessis’ sensational 100 off 51 balls, laced with six fours and seven sixes. He was the anchor in two strong stands β a 97-run opening partnership with Devon Conway and a 69-run stand with Saiteja Mukkamalla.
But Conway’s sluggish 23 off 23 and the quick dismissals of Mukkamalla (38), du Plessis, and Marcus Stoinis in the space of eight deliveries β triggered by Xavier Bartlett and Haris Rauf β stunted their momentum just when they were aiming for a 200-plus total.
“πππ πππ πππππππππππ, πππ πππ ππππ π ππ πβπ ππππππππππ ππππ ππππππ ππππππ πππ,” ππππππππ π πππππ πππππππ π πππππ πππ ππππ-ππππ ππππ.
Allen and Short Dismantle the Target
San Franciscoβs response was a masterclass in aggressive T20 batting. Short took off from the first ball, racing to 33 off 16 even before Allen got going. Allen joined the party in the fourth over, and from there, boundaries flowed relentlessly.
The opening pair raced to 83 in the powerplay, and by the time Short was dismissed for 61 off 29 balls, the Unicorns were cruising at 117. Allen went on to make 78 in 35 deliveries, punishing anything short or wide with clean hits.
βπΆπππ ππ πππ πππππ, ππ π ππ πβπ ππππ. π°π ππππ ππππ ππ ππππ πππππ ππ πππ ππππ ππππππππππ,β ππππ ππππ π¨ππππ πππππ πππ ππππππππππ πππππ.
Unicorns Stay Perfect in MLC 2025
Jake Fraser-McGurk added a steady 37 off 25 to take the side home with 23 balls to spare, marking Unicornsβ fourth win in a row and keeping them atop the MLC standings. Texas Super Kings, despite their strong start to the season, suffered their first defeat, slipping just below Unicorns on the table.
βπ»ππ π ππππ ππ ππππ πππππππ ππππππ ππ πππππ. πΎπ ππππ ππππ ππ πππ πππππ, ππ πππππ πππππ ππππππππ,β ππππ πΌπππππππ πππππππ ππππ-πππππ.