MLC 2024 stats recap: Faf du Plessis steals spotlight with the bat in second edition

With the inaugural season in 2023 establishing the potential of Major League Cricket as the flagship T20 competition in America, competition between the six competing teams increased manifold in the second season of the competition.Played across two venues - Church Street Park in North Carolina and Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Texas, the 25-game tournament saw a fierce battle for the trophy.While the San Francisco Unicorns, Washington Freedom, Texas Super Kings and MI New York made the playoffs, the season finale saw Washington Freedom demolish San Francisco Unicorns in the final by a whopping 96 runs to become first-time champions.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!While Nicholas Pooran finished top of the list of highest run-getters in 2023, the West Indian was dethroned by South Africa's Faf du Plessis in 2024. In a top five list dominated by Australians and New Zealanders, Du Plessis's scintillating 420 runs from 8 matches marked bested the likes of Steve Smith and Travis Head. Donning the jersey of the Texas Super Kings, Du Plessis eclipsed the inaugural top scorer record by 32 runs. Despite his side not making the final, his 3 fifties and one century was undisputedly the best in the tournament.Steve Smith (Washington Freedom) : 336 runsTravis Head (Washington Freedom) : 336 runsFinn Allen (San Francisco Unicorns) : 306 runsDevon Conway (Texas Super Kings) : 293 runsRyan Rickelton - 103 not outFinn Allen - 101Faf du Plessis - 100Ryan Rickelton - 89Steve Smith - 88Finn Allen - 187.73Matthew Short - 180.85Rashid Khan - 178.02Travis Head - 173.20Faf du Plessis - 171.43While Finn Allen also finished fourth in the list of top scorers in 2024, the Kiwi's two explosive fifties and another century make him one of the most threatening batter of the previous season.Faf du Plessis - 23 sixesSteve Smith - 21 sixesFinn Allen - 20 sixesTravis Head - 18 sixesMatthew Short - 14 sixesWhile Du Plessis led the list for most runs, the South African also became a nightmare for bowlers through his consistency in hitting over the fence. His 23 sixes stand tall, but nowhere close to Pooran's humongous 34 maximums in the inaugural season.