Finn Allen and Hasan Khan (ex-Cricbuzz)

San Francisco Unicorns topped the Major League Cricket standings and booked their place in the semi-finals in a thrilling chase of 191 against Seattle Orcas thanks to a sensational late strike from Hasan Khan.With 47 runs needed from the last four overs, the contest was still tied before Hasan decisively turned it in the Unicorns’ favour. The left-handed batsman made an unbeaten cameo and hit consecutive sixes on Tanveer Sangha before getting out. marcus stoinis The chase was completed in style with a sequence of six, four, four and six in the next over.The win not only clinched San Francisco’s spot in the semi-finals but also ended Seattle’s hopes of reaching the playoffs.Earlier, while chasing the target, Unicorns were playing comfortably at 99 runs for 1 wicket after 10 overs. finn allen Set the tone with another aggressive innings, racing towards a half-century with his trademark leg-side hitting, while Matt Short provided solid support.However, the momentum changed after Allen’s dismissal. Jasdeep Sangha adjusted his line after two wides and unleashed an aggressive stroke to short, with Stoinis taking a sharp catch at cover to remove the opener. It was an eventful evening in the field for the Australian, who first took a brilliant overhead catch at mid-on to dismiss Luan-Dre Pretorius.Despite having the wicket in hand, San Francisco slowed down considerably during the middle overs and managed only 32 runs between the end of the 11th and 16th overs. Short, who rose from 27 off 20 balls to 35 off 31 balls during that period, struggled to maintain the scoring rate before chasing down the target with back-to-back boundaries. His dismissal briefly tilted the tie in Seattle’s favor before Hasen mounted a decisive counterattack.Seattle’s bowlers were also felt by the absence of the tournament’s leading wicket-taker Otniel Bartman, who left the competition due to other commitments. Dasun Shanaka was another notable absentee.Earlier, Seattle bounced back nicely after slipping to 34 for 3. Matthew Britzke Shimron Hetmyer led the fight with a brilliant innings adding 65 runs in just 32 balls. Bretzke hit four sixes and three fours, with an inside-out six off Aaron Hardy being the highlight of his innings.Hetmyer’s tenure ended when Xavier Bartlett completed an excellent catch at long-on, hitting a powerful shot out of the air. Both Bartlett and Hetmyer looked stunned after seeing the catch, with the batsman leaning on the pitch in disbelief.

After this Bretzke made another important partnership with Stoinis. The South African brought up his half-century off just 24 balls, but Stoinis took time to get going and scored just 11 runs from his first 13 balls. Peter Siddle finally broke the situation by dismissing Britzke, while Ali Shaikh was run out on the very next ball.Stoinis scored 49 off 35 balls with the help of Cameron Gannon, who hit consecutive sixes off Hardy, helping Seattle score 190.Nevertheless, Britzke later admitted that his team had weakened.At the half stage, he believed Seattle were “30 runs short”, a prediction which ultimately proved accurate as the Unicorns met the target to top the table.San Francisco will now join the Los Angeles Knight Riders, MI New York and Washington Freedom in the playoffs.