MLC 2025: Aaron Jones and Shimron Hetmyer keep Seattle Orcas in the playoffs race; push Los Angeles Knight Riders to the bottom

Time of India

12 hours ago

Shimron Hetmyer of Seattle Orcas is congratulated by Kyle Mayers of Seattle Orcas for reaching his fifty during match 20 of the Cognizant Major League Cricket season 3 between LA Knight Riders and Seattle Orcas held at the Grand Prairie cricket stadium, Grand Prairie, United States of America (USA). (Sportzpics)
The Seattle Orcas continued their resurgence in Major League Cricket (MLC) 2025, chasing down yet another 200-plus target to beat the Los Angeles Knight Riders by five wickets. This marked their second consecutive victory in the tournament.
Batting first after being asked to set a target, the Knight Riders got off to a sluggish start, with the ball gripping in the surface and making timing difficult. Andre Fletcher managed to find occasional boundaries to maintain some momentum during the powerplay. Harmeet Singh bowled three tidy overs upfront and was eventually rewarded when Fletcher picked out long-off.
Shimron Hetmyer takes Stake Player of the Match for the second night in a row ‼️
@StakeIND
x
@stakenewsindia
pic.twitter.com/j4L7Df9bu9
— Cognizant Major League Cricket (@MLCricket)
June 29, 2025
In a surprising move,
Andre Russell
came in at No. 3 and initially played cautiously, especially against spin, while LAKR lost two quick wickets to slump to 48/3.
Russell then joined forces with Saif Badar to rebuild, and later Rovman Powell arrived to accelerate the innings. Badar was eventually dismissed for 41, caught by Klaasen off Salamkheil, but partnerships between Russell-Badar and Russell-Powell powered LAKR past 200. Russell notched up his first fifty of the season and stayed unbeaten on 65 from 39 balls, while Powell's quickfire 43* off 21 ensured they finished on 202/4.
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Waqar Salamkheil was the pick of the Orcas bowlers with 2/29 in his four overs. Harmeet Singh and Ayan Desai chipped in with one wicket apiece.
Chasing 203, Seattle lost opener Josh Brown on the second ball, but
Aaron Jones
and Shayan Jahangir stitched together a brilliant 119-run stand for the second wicket. They took calculated risks to keep the scoreboard ticking. Jones brought up his maiden MLC fifty before falling to Schalkwyk off Holder for 73 (38 balls, 10 fours, 2 sixes).
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The Orcas then suffered a mini-collapse, losing Jahangir, Klaasen, and Sikandar Raza in quick succession. But
Shimron Hetmyer
carried on his blistering form from the previous match, hammering six sixes and four boundaries in a 26-ball 64* to guide Seattle home comfortably. Kyle Mayers played a steady supporting hand with 9 off 12.
Among LAKR's bowlers, Jason Holder impressed with 2 wickets, while Tanveer Sangha also claimed 2/39.
Andre Russell picked up one wicket for 29 in his four-over spell.
Brief Scores
Los Angeles Knight Riders:
202 for 4 (Andre Russell 65 not out, Rovman Powell 43*, Saif Badar 41; Waqar Salamkheil 2-29)
Seattle Orcas:
206 for 5 (Aaron Jones 73, Shimron Hetmyer 64*, Jahangir 43; Jason Holder 2-36, Jason Sangha 2-39)
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