Grand Prairie [Texas], July 9 (ANI): In an unfortunate turn of events, Qualifier 1 of the 2025 edition of Major League Cricket (MLC) season between Washington Freedom and Texas Super Kings was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to persistent rain in Grand Prairie, Texas.

The development means that Washington Freedom, who held a superior position on the points table in the group stage, officially qualified as the first finalist of the 2025 season, as per the press release from MLC.

The Texas Super Kings, on the other hand, remain in contention for a place in the final. They will face the winner of the Eliminator between San Francisco Unicorns and MI New York in Qualifier 2, scheduled for Friday, July 11. The winner of that fixture will take on Washington Freedom in the final on Sunday, July 13.

Before the rain halted the match, Washington Freedom skipper Glenn Maxwell won the toss and opted to field.

After winning the toss, Maxwell said, 'We are going to bowl. Fresh wicket, under covers for a bit so it's an opportunity to get early wickets. Hopefully, we can start well and go from there. Lockie is back for this game. Hopefully, a low score (smiles). I would like our bowlers to stick to the plans and restrict them. Mark Chapman misses out.'

Texas Super Kings skipper Faf du Plessis said his team was prepared to bat first and confident heading into the match. 'Lose the toss and bat first. Good wicket, try to assess and put up a good score. We are confident. A few different guys have stepped up, and we are ready for today. Even though we were 30/3 in the powerplay, the guys in the middle got us a winning total. Same team,' he said.

Teams:

Washington Freedom (Playing XI): Mitchell Owen, Rachin Ravindra, Andries Gous (wk), Glenn Phillips, Glenn Maxwell (c), Mukhtar Ahmed, Obus Pienaar, Jack Edwards, Ian Holland, Lockie Ferguson, Saurabh Netravalkar

Texas Super Kings (Playing XI): Smit Patel (wk), Faf du Plessis (c), Saiteja Mukkamalla, Marcus Stoinis, Shubham Ranjane, Donovan Ferreira, Calvin Savage, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Zia-ul-Haq, Adam Milne. (ANI)