Dallas [US], June 26 (ANI): The San Francisco Unicorns became the first team to qualify for the Major League Cricket (MLC) 2025 playoffs, securing a commanding 32-run victory over the struggling Seattle Orcas in Dallas, as per ESPNcricinfo.

With six consecutive wins, the Unicorns remain unbeaten and firmly positioned at the top of the points table, while the Orcas continue their winless run with a fifth straight defeat, languishing at the bottom.

It was a collective effort from the Unicorns, led by captain Matthew Short and Romario Shepherd, both of whom starred with bat and ball, while Haris Rauf delivered a decisive four-wicket haul.

After being put in to bat first, the Unicorns lost opener Finn Allen early in the second over. However, Jake Fraser-McGurk and Short stitched together a solid 68-run partnership for the second wicket, giving the innings much-needed momentum. McGurk's fluent 34 off 21 balls came to an end in the eighth over, dismissed by left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh, which initiated a collapse. The Unicorns stumbled from 86/1 to 103/6 in a matter of overs.

Short, who was in sublime touch, struck seven boundaries and two sixes in his 29-ball 52 before falling to Harmeet, who also removed Hassan Khan in the same over. Just as the Unicorns seemed to be slipping, Romario Shepherd launched a counterattack, hammering four fours and four sixes in a blistering 56 off 31 balls to propel his team to a competitive total of 176/8.

Gerald Coetzee played a key role in the death overs, chipping in with 3/34, including crucial middle-order wickets.

In reply, the Orcas started brightly, racing to 29 runs in the first two overs thanks to an aggressive Shayan Jahangir. The opener looked in fine touch, smashing 40 off just 22 balls with a flurry of attractive strokes. However, Shepherd once again turned the tide, removing Jahangir in the seventh over.

The very next over saw skipper Matthew Short strike twice, dismissing both David Warner and Kyle Mayers in quick succession. The Orcas never recovered from the triple blow and kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

Despite brief resistance from Shimron Hetmyer and Sujit Nayak, the innings crumbled. Haris Rauf, who had earlier dismissed Heinrich Klaasen, returned to clean up the tail, taking the wickets of Hetmyer, Coetzee, and Cameron Gannon to finish with figures of 4/32. (ANI)