By Dwayne Ferreira.
Lhuan-dre Pretorius made an unbeaten 69 after Peter Siddle’s three wickets helped San Francisco Unicorns beat Texas Super Kings by seven wickets.
Lhuan-dre Pretorius followed his rapid opening-match fifty with an unbeaten 69 as San Francisco Unicorns defeated Texas Super Kings by seven wickets at Grand Prairie Stadium, claiming their first victory of the 2026 Major League Cricket season. Peter Siddle took three wickets to restrict Texas to 152 for nine before San Francisco completed the chase in 17.5 overs.
San Francisco captain Matthew Short won the toss and chose to bowl, a decision rewarded almost immediately. Siddle dismissed Saiteja Mukkamalla for one, while Brody Couch removed Texas captain Faf du Plessis for six.
Milind Kumar briefly counterattacked with two sixes in a 17 from 11 balls, but Ghulam Mudassar ended his innings and left Texas 29 for three inside five overs. The home side reached only 43 during the powerplay and entered the middle overs needing a recovery.
Rilee Rossouw attempted to provide it. The left-hander struck five fours in a 29-ball 36 and added 31 with Wiaan Mulder, but Texas repeatedly lost wickets whenever a partnership threatened to develop.
Rossouw was run out with the total on 81 before Siddle removed Mulder two balls later. Short then bowled Mohammad Mohsin and helped complete the run-out of Donovan Ferreira, whose 21 from 17 balls had carried Texas to 122 for eight.
Hardus Viljoen ensured the Super Kings reached a defendable total. He struck one four and three sixes in an unbeaten 33 from 24 deliveries, while Nandre Burger added nine not out from four. Their late runs pushed Texas to 152 for nine.
Siddle finished with three for 36 and Short claimed two for 25. Mudassar was especially economical, conceding only 11 runs while taking one wicket from three overs. Ravichandran Ashwin made his MLC debut for San Francisco, becoming the first capped India men’s international to appear in the competition, although he conceded 24 from his two wicketless overs.
San Francisco lost Finn Allen for one in the opening over when Burger found the breakthrough, but Pretorius and Short responded with the decisive partnership. Short attacked first, striking three fours and two sixes in a 19-ball 31.
Pretorius provided the stability around that aggression while still punishing scoring opportunities. Their second-wicket stand produced 82 runs from 47 balls and moved the Unicorns to 89 before Amshi de Silva trapped Short leg before wicket.
Connor Esterhuizen made 20 from 18 balls and helped Pretorius add another 33. When Viljoen dismissed him at 122 for three, San Francisco required only 31 from 33 deliveries.
Sanjay Krishnamurthi removed any remaining uncertainty with an unbeaten 19 from 12 balls. Pretorius completed the chase with eight fours and a six in his 55-ball innings, carefully adjusting his tempo once Short had provided the early acceleration.
Pretorius was named Player of the Match after guiding the chase from the opening over to its conclusion. His calm innings was an effective contrast to his 28-ball 58 against Los Angeles the previous day and showed his ability to adjust to different match equations.
San Francisco improved to one win and one defeat, quickly recovering from their rain-shortened loss to the Knight Riders. Texas fell to the same record after failing to build on their spectacular opening victory over Seattle.
For the Super Kings, the defeat exposed their dependence on early top-order runs. For San Francisco, Siddle’s experience, Short’s all-round contribution and Pretorius’ second successive major innings provided a more balanced route to victory before the competition moved into its next phase.
MATCH SUMMARY
TEXAS SUPER KINGS – 152/9, 20 overs
Rilee Rossouw 36, Hardus Viljoen 33 not out, Donovan Ferreira 21
Peter Siddle 3/36, Matthew Short 2/25, Ghulam Mudassar 1/11
SAN FRANCISCO UNICORNS – 153/3, 17.5 overs
Lhuan-dre Pretorius 69 not out, Matthew Short 31, Connor Esterhuizen 20
Nandre Burger 1/13, Amshi de Silva 1/21, Hardus Viljoen 1/33
Result: San Francisco Unicorns won by seven wickets with 13 balls remaining.
Player of the Match: Lhuan-dre Pretorius.
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