Kieron Pollard Becomes No.1 T20 Run-Scorer After Historic MI New York Century in MLC 2026
Kieron Pollard made history in Major League Cricket 2026 by becoming the highest run-scorer in men’s T20 cricket, overtaking Chris Gayle during a brilliant unbeaten century for MI New York. Despite his heroics, Washington Freedom won the match by 30 runs, powered by Mitchell Owen’s record-breaking 155 off 68 balls.
June 21, 2026: Kieron Pollard created history in T20 cricket on Saturday by overtaking Chris Gayle to become the highest run-scorer in men’s T20 cricket. The milestone came during a superb century for MI New York in the 2026 edition of Major League Cricket. The former West Indies captain reached the record in style, hitting a six during his unbeaten 100 off 56 balls against Washington Freedom. With this innings, Pollard moved past Gayle’s total of 14,562 runs and reached 14,582 runs from 736 T20 matches.
This achievement once again highlights Pollard’s long and consistent career in T20 cricket. He has played across almost 20 years in different franchise leagues around the world. He is also the only cricketer to feature in more than 700 T20 matches, showing his fitness, durability, and impact in the shortest format of the game.
Washington Freedom win despite Pollard’s historic effort
Even though Pollard made history, MI New York ended up on the losing side. Washington Freedom secured a convincing 30-run victory after posting a huge total of 245/5. The main highlight of their innings was Australian all-rounder Mitchell Owen, who played a stunning knock of 155 runs from just 68 balls. It is the highest individual score in Major League Cricket history. Owen reached his century in only 41 balls and dominated the bowling attack with powerful hitting all around the ground.
He also got strong support from Steve Smith and Mark Chapman, who added important runs in the middle order. Their contributions helped Washington Freedom set a massive target of 246, which put MI New York under pressure right from the start of the match.
POLLARD BREAKS GAYLE'S RECORD.🤯
Kieron Pollard becomes leading run scorer in T20s surpassing Chris Gayle record. pic.twitter.com/gyDYeHWVu0
— Maina Singh (@Maina_Singhx77) June 21, 2026
The chase began in disastrous fashion for MI New York. Quinton de Kock and Monank Patel were dismissed in the opening over itself, giving the team an early setback. Soon after, Glenn Maxwell removed Nicholas Pooran, and MI New York found themselves in deep trouble. At one stage, they were struggling at 64/5, and the match looked almost out of reach.
However, Kieron Pollard tried to pull his team back into the game with a strong counterattack. He built important partnerships with Romario Shepherd and Corbin Bosch and kept the scoreboard moving under pressure. Pollard eventually reached his century on the final ball of the innings, finishing unbeaten on 100 runs with 11 fours and four sixes. It was only the second T20 century of his long career, making the moment even more special.
Despite MI New York’s defeat, Pollard remained the biggest talking point of the match. His innings not only showed his finishing ability but also helped him move to the top of the all-time T20 run-scoring list. He now leads the chart ahead of Chris Gayle (14,562 runs), followed by Alex Hales (14,449), Jos Buttler (14,371), David Warner (14,284), and Virat Kohli (14,218). These six batters are the only players in T20 cricket history to cross the 14,000-run mark, underlining their consistency and dominance in the format.
