London Spirit eliminated from The Hundred after MI London win at Lord's
London Spirit became the first team to be eliminated from The Hundred after a four-wicket defeat by MI London at Lord's in the men's competition on 6 August 2026. MI London moved up to second in the table to boost their knockout hopes.
London Spirit posted 160-5 from 100 balls, Lhuan-Dre Pretorius scoring 52 off 28; the innings summary included Sowter 2-29. MI London reached 164-6 in 94 balls while chasing 161, Nicholas Pooran making 39 off 25 and J Overton recording 2-23, as MI London won by four wickets in front of 27,721 spectators, a group-stage record for The Hundred.
Chasing 161, MI London required 70 off 37 at one stage; Sam Curran contributed 33 after a slow start of one off seven before accelerating, and Sikandar Raza produced a quickfire 32 off 16 to bring the chase within reach. Raza was making his first appearance of the campaign after replacing Rashid Khan and smacked four sixes before he fell with just six needed to win. Pooran provided a valuable 39 but was brilliantly run out by David Willey, temporarily giving Spirit hope.
Raza led the counter-attack late in the innings before Tom Curran and Ollie Pope held their nerve to complete the chase with six balls to spare. The partnership at the death secured MI London's victory and improved their position in the standings.
Earlier, Spirit had been powered by Pretorius' 52 off 28, the 20-year-old eventually taken by Will Jacks' diving relay on the boundary. David Willey hit 31 off 18 and James Coles, the most expensive player at the auction earlier this year, finished unbeaten on 30 as Spirit posted a competitive total.
The defeat leaves London Spirit with one win from six matches so far in a campaign described as a season to forget for head coach Andy Flower. In the women's competition, Birmingham Phoenix and Sunrisers Leeds meet at Edgbaston at 15:00 BST in must-win fixtures, with the men's game at the same venue scheduled for 18:30, where Phoenix are also struggling at the bottom of the table and Sunrisers can keep themselves in knockout contention with a win.
