Shimron Hetmyer, Aaron Jones' impactful innings edge past Seattle Orcas for a thrilling victory over LA Knight Riders

Dallas [US] June 29 : Continuing his last-ball heroics from last night's game against the San Francisco Unicorns, Shimron Hetmyer played yet another electrifying innings, striking at over 250, to pull off another thrilling victory for Seattle Orcas against LA Knight Riders at Grand Prairie in the ongoing Major League Cricket (MLC), according to MLC website.
Banking on his form from yesterday's last-minute thriller, the Orcas sent Shimron Hetmyer early ahead of Kyle Mayers. The move paid great dividends when Hetmyer counterattacked, leaving the Knight Riders clueless as he went on with the chase.
Before Hetmyer provided the finishing touches, it was the stable stand between Shayan Jahangir and Aaron Jones that set the tone for the Orcas in their chase. The pair took responsibility and stood firm, adding 119 runs for the second wicket after Jahangir's opening partner, Josh Brown, was sent back to the pavilion off the second delivery.
After Jahangir departed for 43 runs in the 13th over, the Orcas were still well on course in pursuit of 203. However, Tanveer Sangha was not going to give in easily, as the Aussie leggie produced a double strike in his third over that yielded only two runs, giving the LA Knight Riders an opening back into the game.
While Sangha's critical spell was threatening to take the game away, Hetmyer took charge of the proceedings, taking Sangha for two huge maximums in his final over.
Hetmyer's second consecutive half-century came at lightning pace, as the Orcas leftie took only 18 balls to complete it, ultimately remaining unbeaten on 64, which included six maximums and four fours.
Earlier, Andre Russell showed his power-hitting arch, smashing 10 boundaries in a 39-ball 65 to orchestrate a comeback after early breakthroughs from the left-arm spin duo of Waqar Salamkheil and Harmeet Singh spun the Knight Riders into trouble.
Russell and Saif Badar came together in the 8th over to start the recovery after the Orcas took three quick wickets, stifling the Knight Riders to a run-a-ball 48 by the 8th over. The pair compiled 77 for the fourth wicket as Badar blazed his way to 41 off only 21 balls, hitting 4 towering sixes in the process.
Badar's wicket did not deter the power-hitting, as he passed the baton to Rovman Powell, who took charge against the Orcas' bowlers with a dazzling display, smashing 43 off 21 balls, including towering sixes into the night sky at Grand Prairie. The destructive duo of Powell and Russell added 73 off a mere 33 deliveries as the Knight Riders recovered well to post a relatively decent total of 202/4 on board.
Courtesy of Hetmyer's back-to-back adrenaline-charged performances, the Seattle Orcas now have 4 points on the board, making the race to the Playoffs more competitive for the bottom three teams on the table.
As they seek to maximise their chances ahead, both teams will fly to Florida for the next part of the competition. The Orcas have a tough challenge ahead on Tuesday when they take on a strong San Francisco Unicorns side, while the Knight Riders will test their mettle against MI New York in pursuit of their next victory.
Match Summary: Seattle Orcas beat Los Angeles Knight Riders by 5 wickets (with 1 ball remaining)
LAKR: 202/4 in 20 overs (Andre Russell 65*, Rovman Powell 43*, Saif Badar 41; Waqar Salamkheil 29/2, Harmeet Singh 17/1)
SO: 206/5 in 19.5 overs (Aaron Jones 73, Shimron Hetmyer 64, Shayan Jahangir 43; Jason Holder 36/2, Tanveer Sangha 39/2).