LA Knight Riders Beat TSK by 6 Wickets to Finish Second — MLC 2026 Match Report

Texas Super Kings (Playing XI): Faf du Plessis (c), Saiteja Mukkamalla (wk), Rilee Rossouw, Donovan Ferreira, Dian Forrester, Shubham Ranjane, Calvin Savage, Amshi de Silva, Akeal Hosein, Abhimanyu Lamba, Hardus Viljoen

Los Angeles Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.

A hot evening in Oakland for the final league game of MLC 2026. Texas Super Kings have already been eliminated — four successive defeats have ended their playoff hopes — but this is still a game that matters enormously to Los Angeles Knight Riders, who need a win to seal a top-two finish and the home advantage that comes with it. LAKR come in having won back-to-back; TSK will want to finish on a positive note and deny their opponents the perfect send-off into the knockouts. There is a slight chance of rain, but so far the skies have stayed clear.

Head to Head: TSK vs LA Knight Riders

Level 3–3 — though three of those meetings have been comprehensive TSK wins by 50-plus runs. LAKR's sole win came in 2024 by just 12 runs. This fixture has historically been high-scoring when TSK bat first, and the surface tonight looks no different.

Key Battles: Who Dominates This Fixture

TSK's top performers vs LAKR: Shubham Ranjane leads among today's XI — 94 runs in 2 matches at SR 146.9, the most consistent bat in this fixture from the current squad. Donovan Ferreira has been extraordinary — 75 runs in 2 matches at SR 202.7 — the highest strike rate of any current TSK batter in this matchup. Saiteja Mukkamalla adds 40 runs in 2 matches at SR 137.9. Faf du Plessis (34 runs in 4 matches, SR 113.3) has been strangely quiet in this fixture relative to his broader form.

LAKR's danger men vs TSK: Unmukt Chand leads all scorers — 124 runs in 4 matches at SR 119.2 — a consistent presence across every edition of this fixture. Andre Russell adds 68 runs in 4 matches at SR 130.8, though his most dangerous contribution has been with the ball. Shadley van Schalkwyk (40 runs, SR 137.9) is a threat in the lower order.

Bowling picture: For TSK, Noor Ahmad has taken 6 wickets in this fixture in 2 matches but is absent today. Akeal Hosein has 2 wickets in 1 match (Eco 3.33) — the most economical in this matchup from today's XI. Adam Milne (who played in earlier meetings) is not in this XI; Viljoen comes in as the pace option.

For LAKR, Ali Khan leads wicket-takers in this fixture with 7 wickets in 4 matches (Eco 10.0) — expensive but relentlessly threatening. Andre Russell and Shadley van Schalkwyk share 4 wickets each across the fixture history. Sunil Narine (2 wickets, Eco 6.56) is the most economical option LAKR have.

TSK Innings: Ranjane's Unbeaten 51 Carries TSK to 171-9

Powerplay: Three Wickets Fall as LAKR Strike Early — 66-3

LAKR chose to bowl and immediately made their intentions clear. Saiteja Mukkamalla fell first — Sunil Narine, introduced early into the attack, hit a length delivery on middle stump and Mukkamalla played down the wrong line, bowled for 4(5), one four. Two more followed in the powerplay as Jason Holder and Andre Russell found movement off the surface.

Faf du Plessis got going initially — a six over long-on, a four through cover — but Russell found the outside edge and Rovman Powell clung on at slip. Faf c Powell b Russell 23(14), one four, two sixes. Then Rilee Rossouw — who had been striking the ball cleanly — tried to heave Holder over midwicket and got a leading edge, a substitute fielder taking a sharp chance low to the ground. Rilee Rossouw c (sub)Chand b Holder 24(13), three fours, one six.

At the powerplay — TSK 66-3 — Dian Forrester 8(2) and Shubham Ranjane 4(3) at the crease, the middle order exposed well ahead of schedule. Three starts wasted; two new batters, ten overs of powerplay carnage already behind them.

Middle Overs: Another Wicket Falls, Ranjane and Ferreira Rebuild — 99-4 at Drinks

The carnage of the powerplay gave way to something more controlled, if never comfortable. Dian Forrester had been striking the ball cleanly — two fours, two sixes in his brief stay — when Rovman Powell found the top edge and Matthew Tromp held on at fine leg. Dian Forrester c Tromp b Powell 24(11), a typically explosive cameo that ended at the worst possible moment. Four down before drinks.

Shubham Ranjane and Donovan Ferreira then produced the partnership TSK needed. They did not tear the attack apart, but they rotated intelligently, took the odd boundary when it was on, and kept the required rate manageable. At drinks — TSK 99-4 after 10 overs — Ranjane 15(11), Ferreira 6(7). Still capable of 175-plus if the back ten cooperated.

Death Overs: Collapse Costs TSK 20 Runs — Ranjane Survives to 51 Not Out

The back ten told a more familiar story. Donovan Ferreira pushed hard for more but Shadley van Schalkwyk found the edge and another substitute fielder held on at slip — Ferreira c (sub)Chand b van Schalkwyk 19(16), one four, one six — the partnership broken at a moment when it was just building to something dangerous.

From there, wickets fell in clusters. Calvin Savage (6/8) was bowled by Holder. Akeal Hosein (10/14) was bowled by Holder in the next over — Holder finishing with 3-33. Hardus Viljoen (3/5) offered Russell a simple caught-and-bowled and was caught by Powell. Amshi de Silva was run out off a direct hit — Powell fielding, Russell completing — for 0.

Through all of it, Shubham Ranjane batted with remarkable composure. He picked his moments, rotated when he had to, attacked when he got a width, and reached his half-century off 34 balls — five fours, one six — remaining not out when the innings closed.

TSK 171-9 (20 overs).

Jason Holder was the pick of the bowlers — 4-0-33-3 — removing Rossouw, Savage, and Hosein to give LAKR total control in the second half of the innings. Andre Russell (3.5-0-38-2) got Faf and Viljoen. Sunil Narine was the standout for economy — 4-0-15-1, Eco 3.80 — removing Mukkamalla and costing almost nothing. Shadley van Schalkwyk (4-0-43-1) got Ferreira but was expensive. Rovman Powell (3-0-22-1) chipped in with Forrester's wicket.

172 to win. Five of TSK's top six got starts and none converted until Ranjane. The surface looks good for batting and LAKR will fancy this chase.

LAKR Chase: Munro Blazes, Tromp Finishes — LAKR Win with 5 Balls to Spare

Powerplay: Munro in Another Gear — 54-0 After 6

LAKR's response was everything TSK feared. Colin Munro came out swinging from ball one — he does not do anchoring, and tonight he did not need to. By the end of the powerplay he was already on 46(25) — six fours, four sixes — and had put the chase firmly in LAKR's hands. Andre Fletcher 7(11) held the other end steadily, not in the same gear as Munro but providing the solidity that allowed his partner to play without restraint.

54-0 after 6 overs. The required rate had been all but neutralised inside the powerplay. TSK had nowhere to hide.

Middle Overs: Opening Stand Worth 87, Then Three Fall — Drinks 87-0, Then Three Quick

At drinks — LAKR 87-0 after 10 overs — Munro on 62(35), Fletcher on 23(25) — the chase was, for all practical purposes, over. An 87-run opening partnership with ten overs to go and 85 needed chasing 172: the arithmetic was simple and the surface was playing beautifully.

The only twist came immediately after drinks. Akeal Hosein — TSK's left-arm spinner and hat-trick hero from earlier in the season — removed Munro, bowled through the gate for 62(36), six fours, four sixes. A brilliant innings, a fitting way to fall. Hosein 4-0-16-1, the only TSK bowler who truly tested LAKR on the night. Then Andre Russell (9/9) was bowled by Hardus Viljoen — two fours, clean hit, clean bowled — and Andre Fletcher was run out for 26(30), Shubham Ranjane hitting the stumps direct from the covers. Three wickets had fallen, the score was still comfortable at around 120 in the mid-teens, but TSK had at least given themselves something to bowl at.

Death Overs: Tromp Destroys TSK's Hope — 143-3 at 17, Won in 19.1

Matthew Tromp had other ideas. The LAKR keeper-batter came to the crease and took the game completely away from TSK with one of the most explosive innings of the tournament. After 17 overs — 143-3, Tromp 38(20), Rovman Powell 5(7) — 29 were needed from 18 balls. Tromp was in a different game to everyone else on the field.

Rovman Powell holed out to Donovan Ferreira off Viljoen for 8(11) in the penultimate over, but it barely mattered. Jason Holder came in and hit a six off his first ball. Tromp reached his fifty off 27 balls — seven fours, two sixes — and with Holder 6(1) alongside him, knocked off the remaining runs with five balls to spare.

LAKR 172-4 (19.1 overs). Matthew Tromp not out 58(28).

Result: LA Knight Riders Won by 6 Wickets — Finish Second in MLC 2026

Los Angeles Knight Riders beat Texas Super Kings by 6 wickets at Oakland, completing three wins in a row to finish second on the MLC 2026 points table.

For TSK, it was another evening of what might have been. Shubham Ranjane's measured, composed 51* — the lone half-century of the innings — gave the total some respectability, but five batters getting starts and none converting told the story of the collapse. 171-9 was probably 15-20 runs short on a surface that offered nothing to the bowlers. Hosein and Viljoen (2-42) were the pick of a modest attack; de Silva (0-40 from 3.1) and Ferreira (0-24) went for plenty.

For LAKR, Munro's powerplay blitz set the tone and Tromp's 58* off 28 balls closed it out. Their 87-run opening stand gave the middle order a platform that even three quick wickets could not destabilise. Jason Holder's 3-33 with the ball, earlier in the evening, was the other decisive contribution.

Texas Super Kings finish sixth and last in MLC 2026 — 3 wins, 7 losses, 6 points, NRR -0.151. Eliminated. A season defined by brilliant individual moments — Faf's 112 against Seattle, Mukkamalla's explosive starts, Hosein's hat-trick — but never the collective consistency that playoffs demand.

LA Knight Riders qualify in second place with 12 points, finishing level on points with San Francisco Unicorns (1st) and Washington Freedom (3rd) but separated by NRR. LAKR head straight into the Finals.

Final MLC 2026 League Standings

💛