Faf Du Plessis hits record century but Texas Super Kings fall short in MLC clash

Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis turned back the clock with a spectacular century for Texas Super Kings (TSK) in the recently concluded Major League Cricket (MLC) clash against the San Francisco Unicorns (SF) here at Dallas on Saturday.Opening the innings for TSK, du Plessis struck a commanding 100 off just 51 deliveries, guiding his team to a formidable total of 198/5 in 20 overs after being asked to bat first. He and New Zealand’s Devon Conway provided a solid platform with a 97-run opening partnership. 

While Conway departed for a run-a-ball 23, du Plessis continued to punish the bowlers, delighting the crowd with powerful strokes all around the ground.This knock marked du Plessis’ second century in MLC, equalling Finn Allen’s record for the most hundreds in the competition.Overall, it was his seventh century in T20 cricket, moving him ahead of Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, and Ruturaj Gaikwad, each of whom have six T20 centuries to their name.

At 40 years and 342 days old, du Plessis also etched his name among the oldest players to score a T20 hundred. 

Only England’s Paul Collingwood 41 years, 65 days in 2017 and Graeme Hick 41 years, 37 days in 2007 have scored centuries at an older age in the format.

Despite his heroics, TSK could not defend their total. The Unicorns made light work of the chase, reaching the target inside 17 overs. 

Openers Finn Allen and Matthew Short laid the foundation with a blistering 117-run stand in just 8.3 overs. 

After Short’s dismissal, Jake Fraser-McGurk added a rapid 37 to seal a dominant win — their fourth straight victory, which strengthened their position at the top of the table.