The 2025 Washington Freedom season was the third season of the Washington Freedom franchise in Major League Cricket (MLC). The team, which was without last year's captain Steven Smith due to injury, was captained by fellow Australian teammate Glenn Maxwell and coached by Ricky Ponting.
As defending champions, the Freedom began their season with a crushing 123-run loss to San Francisco – courtesy of Finn Allen's mammoth 151. They quickly recovered, going 4-0 with a 5-wicket win over Seattle, a heavy 113-run Maxwell-powered victory over Los Angeles, a thrilling last-over 2-wicket game against New York, and a high-scoring 7-wicket chase against Texas. The Freedom closed off their Dallas leg of the tournament strong by again defeating Los Angeles via a last-ball single and delivering San Francisco a 12-run defeat, their first of the season. Ensured of a playoff berth, Washington headed into Lauderhill with a 6-1 record, tied with San Francisco on points but lower on net run rate.
At Lauderhill, in a rain-affected game, the Freedom began poorly with a hefty 43-run defeat to Texas. However, in a play for a top-two finish, the Freedom steamrolled Seattle by 8 wickets and eased past New York by 6 wickets. After shooting up to a first-place group stage finish heading into the playoffs, the Freedom advanced on higher seeding to play New York in the final following a Qualifier 1 washout. They were ultimately downed by 5 runs in a last-over thriller, providing New York with their second MLC championship.
Background On January 10, 2025, ahead of the domestic platers' draft, MLC announced that the tournament's third season would begin play on June 13 in Oakland, and end with the final on July 13. In February, the Freedom released a list of retained overseas players', containing the likes of Maxwell, Smith, and Rachin Ravindra. They further retained domestic bulwarks Andries Gous, Saurabh Netravalkar, and Ian Holland, amongst others.
Prior to the season opener, the team signed a slew of overseas players–the likes of Mitchell Owen, Mark Chapman, and Glenn Phillips.
Squad
Players with international caps are listed in bold. +Washington Freedom rosterNameDate of BirthBatting StyleBowling StyleYear signedNotesBattersSteve Smith Right-handed Right-arm leg spin 2024 Direct signingTravis HeadLeft-handedRight-arm-off spin2024Direct signingJack Edwards Right-handed 2024Direct signingMukhtar Ahmed Right-handed Right-arm leg break googly 2023 All-roundersMitchell Owen Right-handed Right-arm medium 2025Glenn Maxwell Right-handed Right-arm off break 2024 Direct signingRachin Ravindra Left-handed Slow left-arm orthodox 2024 Direct signingGlenn Phillips Right-handed Right-arm off break 2025 Direct signingObus Pienaar Right-handed Left-arm off spin 2023 Justin Dill Right-handed Right-arm medium fast 2023 Ian Holland Right-handed Right-arm medium 2024 Wicket-keeperAndries Gous Right-handed 2023 Lahiru Milantha Left-handed 2024 BowlersSaurabh Netravalkar Right-handed Left-arm medium fast 2023 Jason Behrendorff 20 April 1990Right-handedLeft-arm fast 2025Direct signingLockie Ferguson Right-handed Right-arm fast 2024 Direct signingAkhilesh Bodugum Right-handed Right-arm off spin 2023 U23 playerAmila Aponso Right-handed Slow left-arm orthodox 2024 Yasir Mohammad Left-handed Legbreak Googly 2024
League stage
Standings Points table
Match summary +TeamGroup matchesPlayoffs1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Q/ECFWashington Freedom024681012121416WL Win Loss Tie No Result
Win–loss table TeamLeague stagePlay-offs 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 WashingtonFreedom San Francisco123 runs Seattle8 wickets Los Angeles113 runs New York2 wickets Texas8 wickets Los Angeles5 wickets San Francisco12 runs Texas43 runs Seattle8 wickets New York6 wickets TexasHigher seeding New York5 runs 2nd
Administration and support staff
+Washington Freedom staffPositionNameHead coach Ricky PontingGeneral Manager Michael KlingerBowling coach Dale SteynAssistant coach Samit PatelTeam manager Andrew LynchStrength and conditioning Umar GulHigh performance analyst Zamir KhanPhysiotherapist Noor Ali Zadran
References