MLC 2026: Los Angeles Knight Riders beat Texas Super Kings, set up qualifying clash with San Francisco Unicorns

LA Knight Riders defeated Texas Super Kings (Image credit: Sportzpics) The Los Angeles Knight Riders advanced to the Major League Cricket 2026 qualifiers with a commanding six-wicket victory over the Texas Super Kings in the final league match of the season, securing second place in the points table with their third straight win.A composed chase led by Colin Munro and Matthew Tromp helped LAKR overhaul the target of 172 with five balls to spare, setting up a sensational qualifier against the table-topping San Francisco Unicorns on July 15. Washington Freedom and MI New York will meet in the Eliminator on the same day.After stumbling midway through the campaign, the Knight Riders found form at the perfect time and strung together three consecutive wins to become genuine title contenders.Texas, meanwhile, suffered a disappointing end to their campaign, suffering their fifth straight defeat to end the season at the bottom of the table.

Munro, Tromp’s Clinical Chase

Chasing 172, LAKR got off to a positive start despite Andre Fletcher struggling for fluency. While Fletcher managed 26 off 30 balls, Munro dominated the opening partnership with a blistering 62 off 36 deliveries as the duo added 87 runs to lay the perfect platform.Texas briefly battled back by picking up three quick wickets, including Munro’s, to offer a glimmer of hope.However, Matthew Tromp again showed his growing maturity with the bat as he produced an unbeaten 58 off just 28 balls. Sherfane Powell provided valuable support before Tromp was joined by Jason Holder to calmly complete the chase without any late drama.Tromp, who was named the most valuable player, credited the confidence instilled in him by coaches Shane Watson and Dwayne Bravo.“I just went out there to play my natural game and it’s paying off,” Tromp said. “We still have a long way to go. We have two big playoff games. Hopefully we can win the first one, then the final and lift the trophy.”

Ranjane’s fifty is not enough for Super Kings

Earlier, Shubham Ranjane fought a lone battle with an unbeaten 51 off 34 balls after Jason Holder opted to bowl first.Although Faf du Plessis, Rilee Rossouw and Dian Forrester all got off to bright starts, none of them converted them into meaningful scores as Texas repeatedly lost wickets at crucial moments. Holder finished with impressive figures of 3 for 33 to restrict the Super Kings to 171.Reflecting on the defeat, du Plessis admitted his team fell short of the competitive total.“You needed to be over 180 on that wicket to really feel ahead in the game. I thought we were about 20-30 runs short,” said the skipper.Du Plessis also pointed to missed opportunities in the field and the team’s failure to capitalize on key moments throughout the tournament.“We were very consistent in the way we played, but at crucial moments we kept losing those key moments. Three or four situations where we took the game right down to the wire and unfortunately it went the other way,” he added.With momentum firmly on their side and key strikes peaking at the right time, the Knight Riders now head into the playoffs brimming with confidence as they chase their maiden MLC title against the high-flying Unicorns.