Seattle Orcas were decimated by the pace duo of Lockie Ferguson and Saurabh Netravalkar, who collectively claimed seven wickets. After opting to bat first, the Orcas managed a meagre total of 124. Heinrich Klaasen was the lone warrior for the Orcas, scoring a resilient 51 off 30 balls, but the rest of the team faltered, falling like a house of cards.
Ferguson and Netravalkar each dismissed an opener during the power play, setting the Orcas on the back foot. Despite Klaasen's efforts to anchor the innings amidst the frequent loss of wickets, the team couldn't post a competitive score. Ferguson ended Quinton de Kock's innings at 24 and then struck twice in one over, removing Imad Wasim and Hammad Azam. Klaasen’s resistance was cut short by his South African teammate Marco Jansen, while Netravalkar mopped up the tail with two more wickets.
Washington Freedom's chase of 124 seemed straightforward but turned tricky early on. Travis Head fell for a duck on the second ball against Wasim, and successive dismissals of Rachin Ravindra, Steven Smith, and Mukhtar Ahmed left them reeling at 53 for 4. The situation worsened with Glenn Maxwell's departure on 11. However, Lahiru Milantha and Obus Pienaar steadied the ship with an unbeaten 63-run partnership for the sixth wicket, guiding the team to victory without further trouble.
Brief Scores:
Seattle Orcas 124 in 19.4 overs (Heinrich Klaasen 51; Lockie Ferguson 4-26, Saurabh Netravalkar 3-21) lost to Washington Freedom 127/5 in 18.2 overs (Lahiru Milantha 33) by 5 wickets.