Pat Cummins Joins San Francisco Unicorns in Four-Year MLC Deal

Pat Cummins, Australia's test and ODI captain, has signed a four-year contract with the San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket (MLC). He joins fellow Australians Jake Fraser-McGurk, Glenn Maxwell, Travis Head, and Steve Smith. The MLC, rapidly growing with significant U.S. market potential, starts its second season on July 5.

Australia's test and ODI captain Pat Cummins has signed a four-year deal with the San Francisco Unicorns in a major coup for the fledgling Major League Cricket (MLC) T20 competition. The second season of MLC starts on July 5, less than a week after the T20 World Cup co-hosted by the United States and West Indies wraps up.

Fast bowler Cummins will join hard-hitting compatriot Jake Fraser-McGurk at the Unicorns and follows Australia team mates Glenn Maxwell, Travis Head and Steve Smith into the league. "MLC is developing at a rapid rate, and the U.S. market potential is huge for cricket," Cummins said in a statement.

"While cricket is integral to my involvement, the global network and long-term possibilities offered by the owners specifically, and Silicon Valley more broadly, presented a unique opportunity for me and my life beyond cricket." The Unicorns are co-owned by Silicon Valley entrepreneurs Anand Rajaraman and Venky Harinarayan.

Cummins is one of cricket's most recognised players as a top performer in all three formats (test, one day and T20) who led Australia to the test and one-day world championships last year. MLC was awarded "List A" status by the International Cricket Council last month, making it an official T20 league on a par with the Indian Premier League and other established franchise competitions.

MLC organisers plan to expand the six-team competition to 10 in coming years.