MI NY dent Orcas' playoffs hope despite Stoinis fifer

MI New York pulled the rug from underneath Seattle Orcas's feet, sending their qualification hopes in a tizzy with a 17-run win in their MLC 2026 fixture.

At 137/1 after 15 overs, it was Orcas's games to lose, with 43 still to get, and the pairing of Tim Seifert and Matthew Breetzke having already reeled off a 100-run partnership. But somehow, they made a meal of the chase, losing five wickets and hitting only two boundaries in the last two overs.

Kieron Pollard started the collapse, rolling a cutter past Breetzke and rattling his stumps. A cheeky "finger-on-brain" celebration was short-lived, as Pollard had to walk off immediately after, having done something to his shoulder.

But not long after, he was back in the deep to catch fellow West Indian Shimron Hetmyer, who tried to take on Rushil Ugarkar after a one-run 17th over. This signalled the first sign that the Orcas were not completely in control of the chase, but they still had the explosive Seifert in the middle, racing towards a century. When he was dropped in the 18th over, it looked like New York had let go of a golden opportunity.

Yet, Seifert couldn't make the most of it, nicking behind to Romario Shepherd in a penultimate over that yielded just three runs. Four balls earlier, Shepherd had cleaned up Marcus Stoinis with a roaring yorker.

With 22 needed off six, Pollard did the needful and New York somehow prevailed.

Earlier, New York had looked set for an under-par score, having been reduced to 73/5 in the 12th over. The damage was dealt largely by skipper Stoinis, who picked up his first-ever T20 five-wicket haul, chipping away at New York's batting by craftily operating on the Dallas surface that suited his variable pace.

He began with a feel of Ryan Rickelton's outside edge, giving Orcas an early breakthrough. Ottneil Baartman then extended Nicholas Pooran's sluggish tournament by slipping one through to his stumps. Shakib Al Hasan, playing only his second game this season, ambled around for 15 before holing out. Stoinis then took out Monank Patel with a slow cutter that tricked him off the surface.

They needed a rescue act, and Pollard joined forces with No.7 Tajinder Dhillon to provide it. Between them, they shared seven sixes and 13 fours, putting together an 80-run stand in just under seven overs to resuscitate New York. Reading the slower balls well, Dhillon was helped by a couple of missed chances in the field in the 17th and 18th over, taking just 22 balls for his fifty.

Stoinis returned to collect Pollard, Shepherd and Trent Boult in the space of five balls, but Dhillon undid a part of it with a 20-run final over, launching into Dasun Shanaka. At that time, it felt like bonus runs to give New York a competitive total. Eventually, those made all the difference.

Having hit a crucial fifty, his first of the season, Dhilon deservedly ended with the Player of the Match, dedicating it to his brother, also his first coach, who passed away in January.

Orcas now need to win their final game to make it to the playoffs. New York are now placed pretty at second spot.

Brief scores: MI New York 179/8 in 20 overs (Tajinder Dhillon 66*, Kieron Pollard 54; Marcus Stoinis 5-46, Ottneil Baartman 2-18) beat Seattle Orcas 162/6 in 20 overs (Tim Seifert 88, Matthew Breetzke 44; Kieron Pollard 2-9, Romario Shepherd 2-13) by 17 runs.