OAKLAND: Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf ended his Major League Cricket (MLC) 2026 campaign in disappointment as the San Francisco Unicorns were eliminated following a seven-run loss to the Washington Freedom in Eliminator 2 on Thursday.
In the MLC 2026 final, the Washington Freedom cruised to a 238-6 and restricted the San Francisco Unicorns to 231-6, despite captain Matthew Short’s sensational unbeaten 121, a seven-run loss that ended the Unicorns’ hopes of reaching the title clash.
Two particularly costly outings in the playoffs highlighted Rauff’s tough end to the tournament.
The Pakistan pacer conceded 53 runs in four overs against Los Angeles Knight Riders in the qualifiers on July 16, before spilling 52 runs in four wicketless overs against Washington Freedom in Eliminator 2 as the Unicorns crashed out of the tournament.
The right-arm pacer finished the tournament with 10 wickets in 10 matches, but conceded 319 runs in 37 overs, resulting in an overall economy rate of 8.62.
His campaign was marked by controversy. He produced impressive spells of 3/25 against the Los Angeles Knight Riders, 2/24 and 1/13 against MI New York, and 2/27 against the Washington Freedom in the league stage.
Apart from his two costly playoff spells, Rauff gave up 38 runs in 2.4 overs against the Los Angeles Knight Riders in the opening week, 42 runs against the Washington Freedom in the league stage and 29 runs in 3.2 overs against the Seattle Orcas.
Those performances saw Raub end up as the most expensive front-line bowler among bowlers who bowled at least 30 overs in MLC 2026, with other regular bowlers not conceding more runs throughout the tournament.
Despite Rauf’s personal struggles, the Unicorns played well in the league stage and topped the points table.
However, playoff losses against the Los Angeles Knight Riders and Washington Freedom ended their bid for the first MLC title.