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KIA Oval, London: The Hundred is back with a brand-new look! The sixth edition of the 100-ball competition kicked off between the renamed MI London and Sunrisers Leeds, formerly Oval Invincibles and Northern Superchargers, at the KIA Oval on July 21.
The women champions Sunrisers started their first season as champions in style, crushing MI by seven wickets, crumbling them with the ball and then chasing down the low target rapidly courtesy of Phoebe Litchfield.
The men’s champions MI London also started with a win, which while looked tricky in the start was an easy seven wicket victory thanks to a monster partnership from Sam Curran and Nicholas Pooran.
Dani Gibson won the toss and put Sunrisers into field first. Overcast conditions, with some moisture in the air and with the greenest track imaginable, it was to be a challenge for MI London, and Hayley Matthews stepped up to that challenge. The West Indies captain commanded the powerplay with T20 World Cup top scorer Danni Wyatt-Hodge, looking to set up a dangerous target for Leeds. After comfortably sitting on 56/0 after roughly 35 balls, India’s Deepti Sharma provided the defending champions the breakthrough.
Matthew tried to smash it straight down flat, and the usually unagile Sharma made the extra move to her right to hold onto the catch. What followed was a complete collapse for MI. The boundaries fell dead, and almost in a blink of an eye, the home side were on 91/5. The slower balls from Sharma, Gibson, Annabel Sutherland and Hannah Baker, aided by the almost anchor-like pivot from the grass on the pitch, made it near impossible for London to find the ropes.
They made efforts to slog, but the grass’ thickness extended to the far ends of the Oval, creating a slow outfield, which was made even more difficult by the heavy air, slowing the ball despite the power, and instead found the fielders near the ropes. MI London were desperately scrambling approaching the end, squeezing in a couple boundaries, with a few more wickets lost for good measure, mustering just 107/8 after what seemed like a good start.
Leeds in reply looked confident from the get-go, but MI were ready for the front footed play. Bryony Smith was the first to go, pulling it to Mellie Kerr at short mid-wicket against Alexa Stonehouse, and a brain fade push for a run from Jess Jonasen saw her stranded and run out by Chinelle Henry’s quick movement following her bowling. The two opening wickets didn’t faze Sunrisers in the slightest, as Australians Phoebe Litchfield and Sutherland went guns blazing after settling in during the powerplay.
Litchfield went berserk, maintaining her top score form from the 2025 season. She was on track for a rapid fifty, but her jumpy movement around the crease made her miss Kirstie Gordon’s straighter arm ball, which crashed onto the stumps, ending her innings on 43. But the damage was done. The settled saw through the chase with her skipper Gibson with 31 balls and seven wickets to spare, giving Sunrisers Leeds the perfect start to their title defense campaign.
For the evening clash, MI captain Sam Curran won the toss and opted to field first himself, expecting similar conditions to the afternoon game. T20 starlets Mitchell Marsh and Ryan Rickleton got Sunrisers going in the powerplay, hoping not to repeat the mistakes of the batting first MI London women earlier. But repeat the same mistakes they did. Curran, fresh off his ‘moon ball’ heroics against India at Lord’s, trapped Rickleton for an LBW with another one just as the powerplay concluded.
In pockets, Leeds were keeping the run rate steady, but slower bowling from Sam’s brother, Tom Curran came into effect, as he dismissed England captain Harry Brook. England exile and Leeds captain Zak Crawley and Marsh pushed on, but veteran Richard Gleeson brought on a mini collapse approaching the final quarter of the innings. The two were among the four dismissed within just 11 runs, as Sunrisers sat on 95/6.
Wicketkeeper Tom Allsop jolted some life back into the innings with a cameo of 31, but he stood alone, apart from a couple squeezed in boundaries from the tail as Leeds were bowled out for 143.
Nicholas Pooran and Sam Curran rejoice as MI London start the season with a victory. Anirudh Nair, SAH
Brydon Carse troubled MI London instantly, sending back both Surrey stars Will Jacks and Jason Roy balls apart, leaving them on 4/2. James Vince and S Curran held their nerve through the powerplay, picking their moment, keeping the approachable target in mind. It would be another pacer, Nathan Ellis shifting the momentum back to Sunrisers, bowling Vince’s middle Stump with a perfectly lined delivery.
Nicholas Pooran arrived at the crease, initially struggling. But the West Indies batter found his groove and unleashed a T20 classic with Curran’s support. The pair scored 67 runs within just 25 balls, with both notching a half ton. Pooran was the star bringing his up in just 19 balls, finishing the match off on an unbeaten 58 off 22 balls, handing the record champions the win in this opener with seven wickets and 16 balls remaining.
What they said
Adrien Birrell, Sunrisers Leeds W head coach: (On Deepti Sharma) “We’re delighted to get her. All-round package. Very good return in ball. She’s great around the team.
“She’s chatty. I was thinking she would be a little bit quiet, but she’s very popular and she’s fitted right in. But she’s played a lot of international cricket with our international players, so they all know her very well. Great to have her.”
Lisa Keightly, MI London W head coach: “We got off to a really good start. We got stuck in the middle there and we lost a cluster of wickets, which slowed us down a bit. We didn’t get enough.”
(On building team chemistry) “I don’t know how many days we’ve been able to experience that. It’s been great to play the last couple of days. With the players, you know, it’s going to go well.
It’s been lovely to play (for) the first time today. I’m going to have to bounce back and have a little think about how the game’s going to go. Obviously, we’re going to improve in those areas.”
Nicholas Pooran, MI London M: (On coming straight from the MLC) “It’s been quite different, obviously playing there in a 100 degree heat and then obviously coming here it’s a bit cooler, that was nice. But it’s nice to just bat in a good cricket pitch as well and two conditions come with it, two fun challenges. Just really happy that we as a team can start off on the right foot.”
Zak Crawley, Sunrisers Leeds M captain: (On working with Harry Brook and Mitch Marsh) “I try and lean on them a lot and see what they think, and then just try and get inside their brain and see what they’re thinking. And, you know, like you say, they’re great captains themselves. So yeah, I lean on them a lot.”
