The MI New York create history at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas by lifting their maiden Major League Cricket (MLC) title by defeating Washington Freedom on Sunday. The Mumbai-origin Rushil Ugarkar emerged as the true hero for MINY and was adjudged Player of the Match (POTM) for his tight bowling at the death. 

Tasked with defending 12 in the final over against the likes of Glenn Maxwell and Glenn Phillips, the 22-year-old youngster showcased an immense degree of resilience to overcome some of the best power hitters in world cricket. In his first three balls, Ugarkar conceded only two runs as both Maxwell and Phillips struggled to lineup his slower deliveries. 

With 10 needed of three, Maxwell ran out of patience and eventually gave away his wicket by holing out to the fielder at deep mid wicket. By that point, the game was nearly decided in favor of MINY. But Ugarkar and his men were still not out of the woods as Pienaar made it to the middle. Ugarkar's next two deliveries were also slower balls, with only one of them getting dispatched to the boundary for a four. 

See also: MLC 2025, Final: MI New York vs Washington Freedom full match highlights

Watch the winning moment:

22 Year Old Rushil Ugarkar defended 12 runs in the Final over against Maxwell and Phillips. 🔥pic.twitter.com/RIGojIZJiB

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 14, 2025

Decoding the rise of MI New York in MLC 2025

Unlike the San Francisco Unicorns or Washington Freedom, the MI New York had far from an ideal start. Their journey had its fair share of highs and lows, and the franchise had to endure a topsy-turvy ride throughout the entirety of the league stage. With just one win in seven games, many experts predicted an exit for them. 

But it all changed when they took on the Knight Riders towards the end of the league stage. Two consecutive wins against them put them back on track momentarily. Their misery finally came to an end when the Seattle Orcas, who seemed to be in contention for the fourth spot, lost to the Super Kings by 51 runs, thus putting them marginally ahead of the Orcas in terms of NRR.

After narrowly getting away with a fourth spot qualification, MINY did not hesitate to look back and made every opportunity count. Trent Boult became an unlikely hero in the Eliminator clash against the Unicorns and starred with both the bat and the ball. At a time when defeat seemed evident, Boult slammed an unbeaten 22 out of nowhere to help MINY prevail in a low-scoring run chase. And then in the Qualifier 2 game, Pooran and Pollard put on a show in the final four overs to snatch victory from the Super Kings in emphatic style. 

Rushil Ugarkar's rise came at a vital time for the franchise. The 23-year-old peaked at the right time and finished as the third-highest wicket-taker for his franchise, claiming 11 wickets at a healthy average of 24. Besides, the youngster has openly credited his success to the former Indian captain Rohit Sharma, who played a key role in helping him sharpen his cricketing IQ during the IPL 2025 season.