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Los Angeles Knight Riders celebrating [Source: X]
It was a thriller of an affair and a deserving finale that took place in the Major League Cricket 2026 final on July 18. The match between the Los Angeles Knight Riders and Washington Freedom saw an emphatic end to a contest that had Sunil Narine and Jason Holder written all over it.
The match saw a shaky total put on the board for Washington Freedom to chase. However, the bowling mastery of LAKR held the team back. Sunil Narine and Jason Holder combined to give nightmares to the Steve Smith-led franchise.
Andre Fletcher, Munro anchor team to a modest total for LAKR
Coming in to bat first, the Los Angeles Knight Riders had momentum by their side. Colin Munro and Andre Fletcher posted totals of 40 and 47 runs respectively before Fletcher was dismissed in the eighth over.
Andre Russell came to the crease next; however, he was dismissed quickly for a duck by Nikhil Chaudhary. Another consecutive blow for LAKR came in the 12th over when Colin Munro and Sunil Narine were both dismissed in succession by Rachin Ravindra.
LAKR were four wickets down for 111 runs. Matthew Tromp couldn't add much either and was dismissed in the 15th over alongside Rovman Powell, with the scoreboard reading 136/6 for the Los Angeles Knight Riders.
Then, with decent contributions from the lower middle order, the team could scramble to only 164, which did not seem like a very good total for a Major League Cricket final, especially in an era where batters dominate bowlers in franchise T20 cricket.
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Washington Freedom had a dismal start
As Washington Freedom came in to bat, the equation looked awry for Steve Smith's men from the very beginning. Freedom lost three wickets before the end of the powerplay, with Mitchell Owen, Rachin Ravindra, and Steve Smith departing for paltry scores of 9, 7, and 8 respectively.
It was only Andries Gous and Obus Pienaar who clung on to keep the match alive and take it into the final overs. Sunil Narine (3/13) and Jason Holder (3/31) kept picking up wickets at regular intervals to ensure that Freedom were not allowed to gain the momentum they needed.
However, the twist was only building, with a thrilling finish unfolding in the final over of the match.
The thrilling last over and LAKR’s maiden MLC title win
Shadley Van Schalkwyk, the USA pace star, came on to defend the final over for the Los Angeles Knight Riders, with momentum already shifted to their side.
Schalkwyk needed to defend just 14 runs in the last over, with Lahiru Milantha and Obus at the crease. The very first ball was dispatched by Obus, reducing the equation to just eight required from five deliveries.
A massive shift in momentum followed, but on the next ball, Van Schalkwyk dismissed Pienaar with a brilliant scrambled-seam yorker. On the very next delivery, new batter, Ian Holland was dismissed as well.
Then came the hat-trick ball, and Schalkwyk fired in a wide full toss that Ferguson chopped away to the boundary. Once again, the adrenaline rushed through the players.
Only four runs were required from the last two deliveries. On the penultimate ball, with Ferguson and Milantha at the crease, they managed to take a single, leaving the equation at three runs to win and two to force a Super Over from the final delivery.
As Milantha took guard, Van Schalkwyk produced another yorker, which Milantha struck for a single. As they attempted a second run, wicketkeeper Jahmar Hamilton hit the stumps to complete the run-out, handing the Los Angeles Knight Riders a one-run victory and their maiden MLC title.
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