Let’s be real — if you told someone three weeks ago MI New York would be holding the 2025 Major League Cricket trophy, they probably would have laughed you out of the room. And honestly, rightfully so. One win in their first seven games? That’s not a rough start, that’s a crisis. But here we are, MINY orchestrating one of the greatest comebacks in T20 franchise history, defeating defending champs Washington Freedom by five excruciating runs in the final at Grand Prairie Stadium. There was drama, momentum swings, unexpected match winners, and a finish that had cricket fans glued to their seats.
So, how did we get here? Let’s break it down.
Most bowlers break under that pressure. Rushil Ugarkar didn’t even hesitate.
Despite being relatively new to fast bowling at this level, Ugarkar bowled with the poise and maturity of a veteran bowler. His subtle use of pace changes, not least the wide, slower delivery that got Ravindra earlier, came in handy. In that last over, every last bit of his accuracy forced Maxwell to mistime a slog and put the Freedom in a position of needing 10 off the last ball — effectively dead and buried.
But it wasn’t just execution. It was composure. Against two of the most lethal T20 hitters in the world, Ugarkar didn’t veer from his line once. That over will likely go down as one of the most incredible death bowling efforts in franchise T20 history — and that includes the context.
Boult’s Powerplay Blitz and the Early Knockout Blow
Washington Freedom was chasing 181, but they did the real damage long before they reached double digits on the scoreboard. Trent Boult came out on fire and dismissed Mitchell Owen and Andries Gous in the very first over, both for ducks! Before they knew it, the Freedom was 0 for 2, looking at a big total with their top order already decimated.
Rachin Ravindra and Jack Edwards did everything they could to make the most of the innings, bringing the score up 84 at a good rate. Ravindra was brilliant with 70 off 41. But the mental impact of that double-strike from Boult never really went away. It put Washington into catch-up from that point on, and in the final, that pressure builds quickly.
Boult was invaluable for his ability to swing it up front and nail his yorkers at the death. His 2 for 32 doesn’t scream “match-winner”, but context is everything – and Boult came up big at the right time.
De Kock’s Anchor Assault: The Knock That Set It All Up
Amid the tension of the closing moments, don’t forget: it was de Kock’s timeless innings that kept MI New York in the hunt to begin with. His 77 off 46 was way too flauntingly aggressive batting with control – flicks, drives, pulls, all with a clean strike rate.
More to the point, he opened with a 72-run opening partnership with Monank Patel, giving MINY an exceedingly rare solid start. Then, after losing two wickets in quick time, he added another vital 56 with Nicholas Pooran. The Freedom’s bowlers, particularly Lockie Ferguson, pulled things back during the death overs, but De Kock’s freely flowing innings ensured MI had a competitive total.
And what do we make of that little flourish at the end from Kunwarjeet Singh? Thoughts? That last 22 runs off 13 balls looked trivial, but those little flourishes towards the back end are what swing things in tight contests like this.
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