Steve Smith likely to join America’s Major League Cricket next year
Adam Zampa (L), Usman Khawaja & Steve Smith (R) in the USA
According to reports, Australian cricketer and former captain of the national team, Steve Smith is likely to play in the United States of America's newly formed T20 league next year. Smith, 33, is in talks with the bosses of Major League Cricket (MLC), regarding his participation in the tournament in 2024.
The inaugural edition of the MLC is scheduled to get underway in Texas, on the 13th of July this year. However, Smith will not be able to play this year as the event is clashing with the Ashes series.
The tournament will see the involvement of six teams, to be played in Texas and North Carolina, across three weeks. The tournament is worth more than AU$174 million, having been invested by Indian business tycoons and celebrities including, Microsoft boss Satya Nardella and Bollywood icon Shah Rukh Khan.
The six franchises are based in Dallas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Seattle, and New York City and have a $1.5 million wage cap to pick up 18 players, with no more than seven overseas stars.
Last week, Cricket New South Wales made a public statement about their strategic partnership with MLC that would allow US players to play in NSW Premier Cricket and Australian players to feature in the American T20 tournament.
"With the global cricket landscape currently undergoing significant transition, we view the United States as a market with immense growth potential," CNSW chief executive Lee Germon stated.
Smith, who spends a lot of time in New York these days, had remarked earlier this Summer that it would be a good idea to end his career in the US, where he had announced his engagement with his then-girlfriend and now wife, Dani, in 2017.
The Men’s T20 World Cup is slated to begin in the United States and the West Indies in June 2024, and Smith could be available after the tournament.
"We’ve been in touch with Steve about his plans and what he’s thinking," MLC co-founder Sameer Mehta told News Corp.
He also added that there is a possibility of catching him in action, a lot more, in the US.
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