MI New York Advances to MLC 2025 Final After Thrilling Victory
MI New York Secures Spot in MLC 2025 Final
MI New York, the first champions of Major League Cricket (MLC), have successfully made it to the finals of the 2025 season. Despite facing some setbacks during the league matches, they found their rhythm just in time. In the MLC 2025 Challenger match, standout performances from Kieron Pollard and Nicholas Pooran led them to a seven-wicket victory over Texas Super Kings, with one over remaining. They are now set to compete against the defending champions, Washington Freedom, in the final.
Du Plessis and Hosein Shine, But It's Not Enough
Clutch knocks on a big night! 🏏⚡#TSKvMINY#WhistleForSuperKings#MLC2025 pic.twitter.com/NhiV3QBslT
— Texas Super Kings (@TexasSuperKings) July 12, 2025
After winning the toss, MI New York chose to field first. Texas Super Kings lost their opener, Smit Patel, early on due to a catch by Tristan Luus. Pollard dropped a catch from Faf du Plessis in the next over, but the remaining batsmen, including Saiteja Mukkamalla and Shubham Ranjane, struggled against Rushil Ugarkar and Luus, leaving Texas Super Kings at 43/3 after six overs. Marcus Stoinis had a slow innings, while Du Plessis reached his fifty off 34 balls, with the team at 67/3 at the halfway mark.
Stoinis' innings ended when Agarkar dismissed him for just six runs off 11 balls. Du Plessis was also sent back by Luus after scoring 59 runs off 42 balls, which included seven fours and one six. Akeal Hosein and Donovan Ferreira provided a strong finish in the closing overs. Hosein hit two sixes and a four off Pollard to secure his first T20 half-century, finishing not out on 55 from 32 balls, while Ferreira added 32 runs off 20 balls. Their partnership of 81 runs for the sixth wicket helped Texas Super Kings set a competitive total of 166/5.
Pollard and Pooran Lead a Solid Chase
Kieron Pollard was an absolute menace with the bat tonight, offering a game-changing performance that propelled @MINYCricket to victory, as well as the impending Championship final. 🏆 His efforts earned him the title of Stake Player of the Match. 🔥@StakeIND x @stakenewsindia pic.twitter.com/nMQCgZ193H
— Cognizant Major League Cricket (@MLCricket) July 12, 2025
MI New York began their chase with Monank Patel hitting some early boundaries, benefiting from a dropped catch by Hosein in the third over. Zia-ul-Haq then dismissed Quinton de Kock, leaving MI New York at 42/1 after six overs. In the seventh over, Hosein took out Michael Bracewell. Monank and Pooran tried to increase the scoring rate but struggled, with MI New York at 63/2 after ten overs.
In the 13th over, Monank hit a six but was dismissed on the next ball, falling just short of a half-century with 49 runs off 39 balls, including five fours and two sixes. Pollard entered next and hit a six off Noor Ahmad. Zia-ul-Haq had a chance to dismiss Pollard early but dropped the catch, allowing Pollard to capitalize with two sixes and two fours in the following over.
Adam Milne returned to bowl, but Pooran hit him for a four and a six. In the penultimate over, Pollard struck Stoinis for two more boundaries. Pooran finished the match with a six to reach his fifty, leading MI New York to victory with an unbeaten 52 off 36 balls, while Pollard contributed a powerful 47 off just 22 deliveries.
