Lagta hai unhe Finn Allen ka andaaza nahi tha, jo ek chhote se New Zealand ke opener ne 51 balls mein 151 run thok kar unki saari ummeedein chur-chur kar di. Ye toh wahi baat ho gayi, jab koi bada sher jungle mein ghoomta hai, lekin chhota sa cheetah uski poonch kheech deta hai! Allen ne 19 sixes maare, ek aisa record jo Chris Gayle aur Sahil Chauhan ke 18 sixes ke record ko bhi peechhe chhod gaya. Yeh match Major League Cricket (MLC) 2025 ka opener tha, aur Oakland Coliseum mein 13 June ko khela gaya, jahan Unicorns ne 269/5 ka bada score khada kiya, jo Freedom ke liye 123 run se zyada hi saabit hua.
Ab zara socho, Washington Freedom, jo pichhle saal ke champion the, unke paas Glenn Maxwell aur Glenn Phillips jaise bade naam the. Lekin kya? Unka batting line-up toh 13.1 overs mein 146 run par hi dher ho gaya. Ye wahi Freedom thi jisne toss jeet kar pehle fielding chuni, shayad socha hoga ke Allen aur uski team ko rok lenge. Lekin Allen ne toh unke bowlers ko aisa dhoya jaise koi purani dhoti ko dhoop mein sukhane ke liye latka deta hai. 20 balls mein fifty, 34 balls mein century, aur 49 balls mein 150 – ye toh T20 cricket ka naya itihas likh diya gaya! Allen ka yeh 151 run ka score MLC ka sabse bada individual score bana, jo Nicholas Pooran ke 137* ke record ko bhi tod gaya.
Ab thodi tareef ho jaye. Finn Allen ka yeh performance dekh kar yaad aata hai jab Brendon McCullum ne 2008 mein IPL ke pehle match mein 158* run maare the, jab unhone Kolkata Knight Riders ke liye Royal Challengers Bangalore ke khilaaf 13 sixes thoke the. Woh pal bhi T20 cricket ke liye ek nayi shuruaat thi, aur Allen ka yeh 151 run ka dhamaka bhi MLC ke liye ek aisa hi lamha hai. San Francisco Unicorns, jo pichhle saal ke final mein Freedom se haare the, unhone is baar badla liya, aur woh bhi itne bade margin se – 123 run ki jeet, jo MLC ka sabse bada victory margin hai. Allen ke saath Sanjay Krishnamurthi ne bhi 36 run ka yogdaan diya, aur Hassan Khan ne 38* run ke saath saath 3 wickets bhi liye, jo unhe ek all-round hero bana deta hai. Haris Rauf ne bhi 3 wickets lekar Freedom ke batsmen ko pareshan kiya. Yeh team effort tha, jisme Allen ka bat hi chandni ke jaisa chamka.
Lekin yeh bhi sochne wali baat hai ke Washington Freedom ke paas kitne bade naam the – Maxwell, Phillips, Rachin Ravindra. Ravindra aur Mitchell Owen ne shuruaat mein 32 balls mein 80 run jod kar lagaya tha ke shayad woh 270 ka target chase kar lenge. Lekin jaise hi Allen ka jadoo chala, unka poora batting order ek ke baad ek girta chala gaya. Yeh wahi Ravindra the jinhone New Zealand ke liye 2023 World Cup mein shandaar performances di thi, lekin yahan unka 42 run ka score bhi kaafi nahi tha. Freedom ka yeh collapse dekh kar yaad aata hai jab 2003 World Cup mein South Africa ka Australia ke khilaaf chase ekdum se bigad gaya tha, jab unhe bas 9 run chahiye the. Cricket mein aisa hota hai – ek pal mein aap hero, doosre pal mein zero.
Toh kya Allen ka yeh performance ek flash in the pan tha? Ya fir yeh ek aise khiladi ka aagaz hai jo T20 cricket ko naye level par le jayega? Unicorns ke liye yeh jeet ek shandaar shuruaat hai, lekin Freedom jaise bade team ke khilaaf aisi haar ke baad wapas aana asaan nahi hoga. Allen ne dikha diya ke chhote se khiladi bhi bade dhamake kar sakte hain, lekin cricket ka yeh khel hai, jahan aaj ka raja kal ka ranker bhi ban sakta hai. Ab dekhte hain ke MLC 2025 mein aur kya kya dhamake hote hain, ya fir yeh Allen ka ek hi din ka chamatkar tha.
