| San Francisco Unicorns | |
| League: | Major League Cricket |
| Captain: | Pat Cummins |
| Coach: | Shane Watson |
| City: | San Francisco, California, United States (planned) |
| Colours: | Orange and Blue |
| Owner: | Anand Rajaraman Venky Harinarayan |
| Ground: | Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Stadium (planned) |
| Capacity: | 15,000 (planned) |
| H Pattern B: | _sfu23 |
| H Leftarm: | 1E2952 |
| H Body: | 1E2952 |
| H Rightarm: | 1E2952 |
| H Pants: | 1E2952 |
| H Title: | T20 kit |
The San Francisco Unicorns are an American franchise cricket team, planned to be based in San Francisco, California, that competes in Major League Cricket (MLC).[1] In 2023, it was announced as one of the six teams to participate in the league's inaugural season. The team is owned by Anand Rajaraman and Venky Harinarayan, co-founders of Cambrian ventures.
Plans are underway to build a stadium at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds.[1] The stadium is expected to have a capacity of 15,000 people. The team currently plays at Grand Prairie Stadium in Texas and will continue to do so until the new stadium is completed.[2] In March 2023, Cricket Victoria announced their partnership with the Unicorns for the opening season.[3]
Cricket has been growing steadily in San Jose, thanks to cricket clubs like the Northern California Cricket Alliance. Looking at these growing numbers, the county supervisors have been planning to build a stadium in the Santa Clara Fairgrounds.[4] The Unicorns' minor league affiliate are the Bay Blazers, which competes in MLC's developmental league Minor League Cricket.
In March 2023, the team ownership, name, and logo was unveiled prior to the inaugural MLC domestic draft.[5] The team is owned by Anand Rajaraman and Venky Harinarayan, and the team partnered with the Australia's Cricket Victoria for the first season.[3] Justin Gaele, MLC tournament director emphasizing about the Unicorns, told that the Bay Area could serve as the launchpad for cricket in the United States.
The Unicorns signed the first overseas player signed in the inaugural MLC — Australian international Aaron Finch. He was subsequently announced as the captain.[6] Corey Anderson, Liam Plunkett, Tajinder Singh and Smit Patel were prominent names picked in the domestic round of the draft; Marcus Stoinis was also announced as another overseas signing by the Unicorns.[7] In May 2023, the team announced direct signing of South African pacer, Lungi Ngidi.[8] On 20 June 2023, Unicorns announced former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson as their head coach for the 2023 season.[9]
The team finished fifth in the tournament, winning just two of their five league matches.[10] They were tied on points with the MI New York, but could not advance to the play-offs due to their negative net run arte.
In December 2023, it was announced that the second season of the tournament would begin on July 4, 2024, four days after the conclusion of the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[11] The date was later moved to July 5.[12]
On February 15, 2024, the retained overseas players' Harris Rauf and Finn Allen Retained.On March 1, 2024, the domestic player retention list was announced. Corey Anderson Liam Plunkett, Carmi le Roux, Brody Couch, Sanjay Krishnamurthi were among the domestic players that were retained.[13]
The domestic players' draft was virtually held on March 21, 2024, with a total of 20 players being picked by the teams over 10 rounds.[14] An additional draft is scheduled for June 16 in order for teams to complete their squads.[15]
Hassan Khan, Tajinder Singh,Karima Gore and Jahmar Hamilton were prominent names picked in the domestic round of the draft.[16]
Matthew Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Matt Henry and Josh Inglis were also announced as direct overseas signing by the Unicorns for their second season.[17] [18]
In June 2024, the team announced direct signing of Australia Test and ODI skipper Pat Cummins. After signing a four-year contract with the team, Cummins is expected to fill in the leadership vacuum at the Unicorns after Aaron Finch's retirement.[19] He was subsequently announced as the captain.
Pat Cummins has signed a four-year contract with San Francisco Unicorns, becoming one of the highest-profile players on the roster of a Major League Cricket (MLC) franchise.[20]
| Name | Nationality | Date of birth (age) | Batting style | Bowling style | Year signed | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batters | Finn Allen | 22 April 1999 | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | 2023 | Direct signing | |
| Matthew Short | 8 November 1995 | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | 2024 | Direct signing | ||
| Jake Fraser-McGurk | 11 April 2002 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | 2024 | Direct signing | ||
| Sherfane Rutherford | Left-handed | Right-arm fast medium | 2024 | Direct signing | |||
| All-rounders | Corey Anderson | 13 December 1990 | Left-handed | Left-arm medium-fast | 2023 | ||
| Karima Gore | 25 June 1998 | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | 2024 | |||
| Sanjay Krishnamurthi | 2 June 2003 | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | 2023 | U23 player | ||
| Tajinder Singh | 25 May 1992 | Right-handed | Right-arm off-break | 2024 | Released and re-drafted in 2024 | ||
| Wicket-keepers | Jahmar Hamilton | 22 September 1990 | Right-handed | — | 2024 | ||
| Josh Inglis | 4 March 1994 | Right-handed | — | 2024 | Direct signing | ||
| Bowlers | Pat Cummins | 8 March 1993 | Right-handed | 2024 | Direct signing; Captain | ||
| Brody Couch | 5 December 1999 | Left-handed | Right-arm medium | 2023 | |||
| Carmi le Roux | 30 March 1993 | Right-handed | Left-arm medium-fast | 2023 | |||
| Hassan Khan | 16 October 1998 | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | 2024 | |||
| Liam Plunkett | 6 April 1985 | Right-handed | Right-arm fast | 2023 | |||
| Haris Rauf | 7 November 1993 | Right-handed | Right-arm fast | 2023 | Direct signing | ||
| Matt Henry | 14 December 1991 | Right-handed | Right-arm fast | 2024 | Direct signing | ||
| Abrar Ahmed | 1998 10, df=y | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | 2024 | Direct signing | ||
| Name | ||
| Head coach | Shane Watson | |
| Assistant coach | ||
| Assistant coach | ||
| Team manager | ||
| Strength and conditioning | ||
| High performance analyst | ||
| Physiotherapist | --> |
| Year | Played | Wins | Losses | Ties/NR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| Source: ESPNCricinfo[21] | |||||
Note: