Corey Anderson exit signals Unicorns reset ahead of MLC domestic draft

Monank Patel (MI New York), Harmeet Singh (Seattle Orcas), Andries Gous (Washington Freedom), Shubham Ranjane (Texas Super Kings), Shadley van Schalkwyk (LA Knight Riders) and Hassan Khan (San Francisco Unicorns) headline the list of domestic retentions, all securing contracts in the top $75,000 bracket ahead of the MLC domestic draft scheduled for late Monday night.

For USA captain Monank, the elevation marks a deserved climb from the $45,000 tier after a standout 2025 season, where he finished as the tournament's leading run-scorer, eclipsing the likes of Faf du Plessis. Van Schalkwyk, USA's World Cup hero, has been similarly rewarded leapfrogging from a Level 7 deal to the top bracket after finishing second in the wickets charts, behind only Varun Chakravarthy at the just concluded T20 World Cup.

Unicorns parted ways with captain Corey Anderson, a move that felt increasingly inevitable after the turn of events the past season. After an underwhelming 2024, Anderson's struggles carried into 2025, managing just 12 runs in three outings before injury curtailed his campaign. Former England all-rounder Liam Plunkett also exits as the Unicorns usher in a phase of significant reset with as little as 5 domestic retentions despite securing a play off berth last season.

LA Knight Riders seem to have finally answered the long standing call for a revamp after 3 disastrous seasons. The franchise has finally opted to release their top domestic draft pick Adithya Ganesh, who featured in just one game across two years. Nitish Kumar, who flattered to deceive over three seasons, has also been moved on, with the franchise instead choosing to invest in the potential of Saif Badar.

Orcas, who have endured a similarly lean run, have taken a more measured approach by retaining their core. Apart from the forced absence of Aaron Jones following his ICC suspension, there is little room to reshape their domestic strategy, with only Steven Taylor and Sujith Nayak departing.

Elsewhere, Super Kings' decision to move on from Zia-ul-Haq raised eyebrows, given his role as a consistent bowling spearhead over the past three seasons. The releases of Freedom's Justin Dill, MINY's Ehsan Adil and Unicorns' Carmi le Roux is set to further add depth to what is shaping up to be a competitive fast-bowling pool in the draft.

There are likely to be around 15 spots up for grabs at the draft, with franchises required to field at least nine domestic players in their squads. MINY and Freedom appear largely settled, with balanced rosters. Others, however, have their work cut out. Particularly given the limited options the draft pool is expected to offer. Each franchise will operate with a draft purse of $355,000, adjusted based on their retention numbers, marking roughly a 10 percent increase from the 2025 cycle.

MLC team roster - 2026 season - as on March 16

MI New York

San Francisco Unicorns

MI New York

Seattle Orcas

Texas Super Kings

Washington Freedom