Major League Cricket 2023: Complete Squads, Team and Player List After MLC Draft – All You Need To Know

USA cricket’s ambitious project – the Major League Cricket (MLC) – had its first-ever local players draft on Sunday (March 19). Six MLC franchises, with four of those partly or fully owned by Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises, got their thinking caps on and drafted 54 cricketers in their respective squads. 

Of these 54 cricketers classified as local residents eligible for draft selection in the ‘residents category’, notably, only 15 have played for the USA at the junior or the senior international level and only seven of these have been born in the country. 

But there is no shortage of star attraction in the draft picks made by the franchises in Texas. Over nine rounds of draft selection process, six MLC franchises got nine picks each, including USA-based talents. The franchises also confirmed six marquee overseas signings. 

The tournament rules had allowed the franchises to sign overseas players separately with a reported budget of USD 800,000 for the bracket. For the local player draft, ESPNcricinfo had reported, franchises had 300,000 USD available up their sleeves. 

Also Read: Chennai Super Kings buy Texas-based Major League Cricket franchise in USA

Major League Cricket Teams and Owner list

How the MLC Draft Turned Out?

The draft saw nine rounds of selection and players being assigned their respective teams over the course of the entire process in Texas. Former New Zealand and South African cricketers Corey Anderson and Rusty Theron were the first picks at the draft. Anderson went to the San Francisco Unicorns, while Theron was picked by the Team Texas. 

The Unicorns also signed up former Australian captain Aaron Finch among their marquee overseas signings, apart from retired England seamer Liam Plunkett. Other notable signings from outside the residents category included big names such as Marcus Stoinis (Unicorns), Mitchell Marsh (Seattle Orcas), Anrich Nortje (DC Freedom), Wanindu Hasaranga (Freedom) and Quinton de Kock (Orcas). 

Los Angeles Knight Riders swapped up Unmukt Chand, the famed 2012 U-19 World Cup winning Indian skipper, who bid adieu to Indian cricket last year and played the Big Bash League (BBL) as the first-ever overseas Indian pick. Since he is based in the USA now, Chand got counted in the resident’s category to the KKR franchise. 

Harmeet Singh, another member of that 2012 side, was picked up the Seattle franchise. Mumbai Indians’ based in New York got former USA captain Steven Taylor in their squad. The Knight Riders roped in USA wicketkeeper Jaskaran Malhotra and ex Canada captain Nitish Kumar, apart from Chand. 

There were several other exciting young picks, including USA U19 left-arm spin allrounder Ali Sheikh, who was drafted in by the Knight Riders, with the tournament regulations compelling franchises to invest in USA-based talents, knowing each playing XI must feature six USA residents. 

Notable International Players Who Will Play in MLC 2023:

Aaron Finch

Retiring from international cricket earlier in the year, Finch is set to take the USA route after being drafted in by the San Francisco Unicorns for the first-ever MLC tournament. Finch is an opener with captaincy experience and will be leading the franchise. 

Anrich Nortje 

Nortje continues his Delhi Capitals association by playing for the franchise’s USA-based Freedom side. The South African speedster was the headlining aspect of the Freedom squad, set to lead their pace attack in the six-team competition. 

Wanindu Hasaranga 

Joining hands with Nortje in the Freedom unit will be Sri Lanka’s incisive wristspin sensation and lower-order batting maverick Hasaranga. One of the brightest from the Island nation, Hasaranga will look to add to his T20 stocks with a fruitful campaign in the month-long MLC competition. 

Quinton de Kock 

The Seattle Orcas made one of the smartest overseas signings. De Kock, who can not blast opposition attacks at the top of the order but also provide safe glovework behind the stumps, brings with him a lot of balance and Stability to the CSK-owned franchise. 

Mitchell Marsh 

Talk of balance and stability, Marsh, the Australian fast-bowling allrounder, is another impactful plug along those lines for the Orcas side. Marsh can bat at the top, in the middle, bowl in the middle overs or with the new ball and do it consistently, providing the Orcas think-tank a great deal of flexibility. 

Marcus Stoinis 

Last but certainly not least among the marquee overseas signings in MLC was Stoinis, another Aussie fast-bowling allrounder, with the ability to blast off with the bat in hand and provide impactful utility with the ball. Stoinis will be playing for the Unicorns, where he will enjoy playing under his former Aussie skipper Finch. 

Complete Squads after MLC Draft:

MI New York: Steven Taylor, Hammad Azam, Ehsan Adil, Nosthush Henjige, Monank Patel, Sarbjeet Ladda, Shayan Jahangir, Usman Rafiq, Saideep Ganesh 

San Francisco Unicorns: Aaron Finch, Marcus Stoinis, Corey Anderson, Liam Plunkett, Tajinder Singh, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Carmi Le Roux, Brody Couch, David White, Smit Patel, Sanjay Krishnamurthi 

Los Angeles Knight Riders: Ali Khan, Unmukt Chand, Jaskaran Malhotra, Nitish Kumar, Corne Dry, Ali Sheikh, Saif Badar, Shadley Van Schalhywh, Bhaskar Yadram 

Seattle Orcas: Quinton de Kock, Mitchell Marsh, Harmeet Singh, Shehan Jayasuriya, Shubham Ranjani, Cameron Gannon, Aaron Jones, Nauman Anwar, Phani Simhadri, Angelo Perera, Matthew Tromp 

Washington Freedom: Anrich Nortje, Wanindu Hasaranga, Andries Gous, Mukhtar Ahmed, Obus Pienaar, Saurabh Netravalhar, Saad Ali, Dane Piedt, Sujith Gowda, Justin Dill, Akhilesh Bodugum

Team Texas: Rusty Theron, Calvin Savage, Lahiru Milantaha, Milind Kumar, Sami Aslam, Cameron Stevenson, Cody Chetty, Zia Shahzad, Saiteja Mukamalla