Playing for MI New York at Oakland Coliseum in California, Monank scored the highest individual score by a USA batter in MLC history, surpassing the previous record held by San Francisco Unicorns skipper Corey Anderson.
USA captain Monank Patel made headlines on Thursday (Jun 19) with a stunning knock in the 2025 Major League Cricket (MLC) season. Playing for MI New York at Oakland Coliseum in California, Monank scored the highest individual score by a USA batter (93 runs) in MLC history, surpassing the previous record held by San Francisco Unicorns skipper Corey Anderson. Anderson had scored an unbeaten 91 in the league's inaugural edition, but Monank went a step further with a match-winning performance to etch his name in the MLC record books.
But a question might arise in everyone's mind. Who is Monak Patel?
Born in India, Monank Patel’s journey to the USA national team is inspirational. He was introduced to cricket by his father, Dilip Patel, a former wicketkeeper-batter who played district-level cricket in Gujarat.
Monank followed the footsteps of his father and showed early promise by leading the Anand district U-15 side at just 13. He scored back-to-back big hundreds: 144 and 166 against teams from Surat and Bharuch. His talent caught the attention of Anshuman Gaekwad, the then head coach at the Gujarat Cricket Association, who brought him into the age-group circuit.
Monank decided to move to the United States in 2014 and steadily climbed the ranks in domestic cricket. By 2018, he was part of the USA national team and made his T20 international debut in 2019 against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Dubai.
Since then, he's been a key figure in American cricket's rise.
Monak wins it for MI New York
In the match against the Seattle Orcas, Monank’s brilliant innings helped MI New York chase down a huge total of 201 with an over to spare. While Kyle Mayers had earlier powered Seattle to 200 with an explosive innings of 88. Monank’s explosive batting laid the foundation for the chase. Michael Bracewell supported him well, scoring an unbeaten 50 off 35 balls, while skipper Kieron Pollard also contributed with a quick 26 off 10 deliveries.