Nicholas Pooran, the destructive wicketkeeper-batter, is poised to lead MI New York (MINY) in the upcoming Major League Cricket (MLC) 2025 season. Pooran was named the captain of MINY just one day after shocking the cricket world by withdrawing from international competition.
Pooran contributed significantly to New York’s title success in the inaugural edition of MLC in 2023, with an incredible 137 not out in the final versus Seattle Orcas. The 29-year-old played 61 One-Day Internationals and 106 Twenty20 Internationals for the West Indies before retiring. He also led the Caribbean team in 23 matches after taking over from Kieron Pollard.
MINY revealed its new skipper via a social media post. “#NYC Fam, there’s a new commander in town – Captain Nicholas Pooran,” they posted on X (previously known as Twitter).
#NYC Fam, there’s a new commander in town – 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐬 𝐏𝐨𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐧! 💙#OneFamily #MINewYork #MLC2025 pic.twitter.com/CgCE5RfbY1
— MI New York (@MINYCricket) June 10, 2025
Nicholas Pooran captained MINY in the MLC playoffs and finals in 2023.
This came after usual skipper Kieron Pollard was out due to an injury. Last year, however, Pollard captained MINY for the entire season. He led the squad to the playoffs, but they lost the Eliminator to the Texas Super Kings.
Pooran will seek to assist MINY recover the crown after Washington Freedom won in 2024. The Trinidadian has a tremendous roster at his disposal, with multiple players capable of changing the course of the game with their brilliance. MINY will open their season on Saturday, June 14, when they face the Texas Super Kings at the Oakland Coliseum in California.
Here’s a look at the MINY squad for MLC 2025:
Nicholas Pooran (C & WK), Quinton de Kock, George Linde, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kieron Pollard, Michael Bracewell, Trent Boult, Rashid Khan, Tajinder Singh, Kunwarjeet Singh, Sunny Patel, Heath Richards, Noshtush Kenjige, Ehsan Adil, Naveen-ul-Haq, Rushil Ugarkar, Monak Patel, Agni Chopra, Sharad Lumba.
India
