Pooran and Curran power MI London past Sunrisers Leeds
Nicholas Pooran and Sam Curran's unbeaten 93-run partnership off 40 balls carried MI London to a seven-wicket win over Sunrisers Leeds in The Hundred 2026 opener at The Oval.
Nicholas Pooran and Sam Curran finished the job unbeaten — a 93-run stand off 40 balls that chased down Sunrisers Leeds' 143 and handed MI London a seven-wicket win in The Hundred 2026 opener at The Oval. The pair came in with the innings already tilting their way and accelerated cleanly to the target, MI London reaching it with wickets still in the shed.
The rebranded sides are leaning hard on their expanded wage bills. MI London and Sunrisers Leeds are among the teams that've shifted ownership structures and player salaries upward for this edition, a shift that's meant to sharpen squad assembly from game one. The women's match earlier in the day went the other way — Sunrisers Leeds won that by seven wickets on the same pitch.
MI London starts the tournament with momentum. The rest of the men's schedule rolls out over the next week, and early results like this can shape how teams approach the middle rounds.
CricHubb Take
Win in game one doesn't guarantee anything, but Pooran and Curran's comfort against Leeds' bowling suggests MI London's recruitment strategy — backed by those higher salary caps — has already put together a chase unit that doesn't panic on flat decks.