Major T20 League 2023

Match 2: MINY vs SFU

Preview

With the first match being taken away by the TSK side against LAKR, the Major T20 League 2023 will move forward towards its second fixture between New York and San Francisco. New York is a part of the Mumbai franchise from the Indian T20 League. Both sides have some quality players who have proven in the T20 circuit. 

MINY has a strong batting lineup and this will add to their talking point in this tournament. The players have also participated in other franchise cricket leagues in foreign countries and hence have good coordination. SFU also have some big names on their list who have adequate T20 experience hence it is expected to be a close battle between the two. 

The New York side will be led by Keiron Pollard who is a fierce power-hitter from the Caribbean and is a well-known personality in the Indian franchise cricket circuit. The 5 times Indian T20 League winner is now the coaching staff for the Mumbai franchise but still has cricket left in him. MINY will be counted as one of the strongest teams in this tournament. The core players of this group are also a part of the Mumbai diaspora and therefore will know each other well. The likes of Steven Taylor and Dewald Brevis will look for providing a solid start for their side. Tim David, Nicholas Pooran and Monak Patel will lay a solid platform in the middle order. Also, with the likes of David Wiese and skipper Pollard coming down the order will fulfil that extra firepower that is required.  

The bowling guild has big names like Trent Boult and Kagiso Rabada who have vast experience in this format. They along with Sarabjit Ladda and Nosthush Kenjige must serve well with the ball to put San Francisco under pressure. Pollard and Wiese with their all-rounder skills will be utilizing their experience in the supporting role.

Ex-Australian skipper Aaron Finch is leading SU and his vast experience in both international and franchise cricket will help the side. The side has a strong pack of batters and they all need to perform well as they will be up against a strong bowling attack. 

Finch will look to lead from the front along with Finn Allen. Their middle order is formidable and will expect runs from Corey Anderson, Matthew Wade and Smit Patel. Coming down the order they have Chaitanya Bishnoi and Shadab Khan who can strike the ball as well. 

Lungi Ngidi and Liam Plunkett are renowned bowlers and the side will rely on them to pick wickets with the new ball. Shadab Khan and Sanjay Krishnamurthi must ensure minimum leakage of runs in the middle overs as the MINY batters will stand strong against them. Corey Anderson and Chaitanya Bishnoi need to perform well in the supporting role.

Match Details

Match: MINY vs. SFU, Match 2, Major T20 League 2023

Date: Saturday, July 15, 2023

Time: 2:00 AM (Jul 15)

Venue: Grand Prairie Stadium, Texas

Pitch Report

The Grand Prairie Stadium, Dallas, is a miniature ground with a quick outfield. The batters have performed well here as they can try out their strokes and cross the fence. The pacers get early help from the track, but this track proves to be a difficult venue for the spinners as the small dimensions of the stadium make it difficult for them to stop the batters from playing long shots. 

Hence, we expect a flat track and a high-scoring contest. Batsmen can play their strokes freely on this surface. There is little margin for error for the bowlers especially the spinners as the quality of batting for both sides is too good at this venue. The par score here will be 180 runs and the side batting first in this game will get the advantage of setting a huge target, hence pressurizing the opponents.

MINY vs. SFU Squads

MINY: Steven Taylor, Dewald Brevis, Monank Patel(w), Shayan Jahangir, Kieron Pollard(c), Tim David, Hammad Azam, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Nosthush Kenjige, Trent Boult, Sarabjit Ladda, Jason Behrendorff, Ehsan Adil, David Wiese, Nicholas Pooran, Waqar Salamkheil, Jasdeep Singh, Tristan Stubbs

SFU: Aaron Finch(c), Matthew Wade(w), Smit Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Shadab Khan, Corey Anderson, Tajinder Dhillon, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Liam Plunkett, Haris Rauf, Lungi Ngidi, Amila Aponso, David White, Carmi le Roux, Qais Ahmad, Finn Allen, Mackenzie Harvey, Brody Couch, Sanjay Krishnamurthi

MINY vs. SFU Probable Playing XIs

MINY: Kieron Pollard (c), Nicholas Pooran (wk), Nosthush Kenjige, Steven Taylor, Monak Patel, Tim David, Trent Boult, Sarabjit Ladda, David Wiese, Kagiso Rabada, Dewald Brevis

SFU: Aaron Finch (c), Matthew Wade (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Lungi Ndigi, Liam Plunkett, Shadab Khan, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Smit Patel, Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Finn Allen, Corey Anderson

Match Prediction

SFU have a powerful batting setup but barring two fast bowlers, their bowling attack seems to be weak. Their bowlers need to perform extraordinarily well to win this match. MINY is a more balanced side with strong hitting batters and a powerful bowling attack. We expect the match to be a close encounter but MINY has better chances to win this match.

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