Dallas-Fort Worth continues to expand its sports landscape and the state of Texas took a front row seat with the launch of Cognizant Major League Cricket in the United States in 2023.
Texas Super Kings, the Major League Cricket franchise based in Texas, is headlined by veteran South African and Top Order Batter Faf du Plessis, who returns for his second season. He will be joined by wicket-keeper Devon Conway, Australian power-hitter Marcus Stoinis, fast-bowler Naveen Ul Haq, and Team USA’s Milind Kumar.
What is Major League Cricket?
Major League Cricket (MLC) is the first professional Twenty20 cricket championship in the United States, which began in 2023. Exclusively sanctioned by USA Cricket, MLC showcases superstar players from around the globe, bringing world-class T20 cricket to America.
As the 2024 season is underway, here’s some quick facts on MLC and what you can expect from T20 Cricket:
Where are the matches played?
Matches will take place at Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Texas and Church Street Park in North Carolina. The full schedule and available tickets can be viewed here.
Who are the teams?
There’s six teams currently in the MLC, representing different cities and regions within the United States - The Texas Super Kings, Los Angeles Knight Riders, MI New York, San Francisco Unicorns, Seattle Orcas, and Washington Freedom.
Who won last year?
MI New York claimed victory in the inaugural 2023 MLC season, defeating the Seattle Orcas.
What is T20 Cricket?
T20, or Twenty20 is one format of cricket.
It is a shortened format (around 3 hours) where each team has 20 overs (this includes 120 balls) to score the most runs.
It’s known for its explosive batting as the time constraints means more incentive to hit big “sixes” and take risks. (Sixes are similar to homeruns for all the baseball fans out there).
An 'over' is the name given to six consecutive balls bowled by one ‘bowler’. There are 20 of these overs in an ‘inning’.There are two innings in a game.
What are the rules?
- Each team has 11 batsmen that will attempt to score more runs (points) than their opponent.
- The fielding side will be trying to get all the batsmen out as soon as possible to keep the runs total low.
- A team earns one run when a batsman hits the ball and runs from one set of stumps to the other.
- Teams earn four runs for hitting the ball out of bounds and six runs for hitting the ball out of bounds without it hitting the ground.
- The bowler is the player who throws the ball at the stumps to try to knock the ‘bails’ off. (The bowlers are the equivalent of a pitcher in baseball).
- Wickets/stumps are the three vertical sticks with two smaller ones called bails laid horizontally on top. The goal is to knock the bails off.
- A player on the fielding team stands behind the stumps to catch the ball.
- The white lines on the ground is the crease, this is where the wickets and batsman should be.
What has MLC done for Cricket in the USA?
MLC has revolutionized the cricket landscape in the USA. Cognizant Major League Cricket was recently awarded List-A status, recognized by the ICC as an official T20 league, making it America’s first world-class domestic tournament. The inaugural 2023 season was a huge success, with sold-out matches garnering millions of viewers worldwide. The recent T20 World Cup was played across the USA and West Indies and saw team USA both co-host and participate in the tournament for the first time. Forty-seven of the players who took part in the World Cup will remain in the USA for MLC.
MLC FAMILY DAYS - SUNDAY SPECIAL
Make your next family outing one to remember. Enjoy a world-class cricket match and save big with an MLC family value offer!
Watch the world's best cricketers this summer and take advantage of the new family special offer for Sundays only. Receive 30% off when purchasing four or more tickets by selecting the ‘Family’ option at checkout. Available for all Sunday games (excluding Championship match), valid on all GA tickets, and up to 12 tickets per transaction.
With giveaways, entertainment, and player appearances across the tournament, now is the time to secure your tickets and enjoy the world’s best cricket with the whole family. The full schedule for The 2024 Major League Cricket season can be found here. Tickets start at just $30, purchase your tickets today.
