Narine and Russell have answered the title’s question with a route no other pair in franchise cricket has walked: three different leagues, three different continents, three straight years of silverware. KKR won the IPL in 2024. TKR won the CPL in 2025. Los Angeles Knight Riders won the MLC on July 18, snatched one run off the final ball. The common thread through all three was never the badge on the shirt. It was these two players turning up and delivering when someone else’s trophy needed taking.
Narine & Russell Knight Riders MLC 2026 Title
Los Angeles Knight Riders posted 164 batting first at Oakland Coliseum, a total built from contributions rather than one big innings: Fletcher made 47, Munro 40, Tromp 39. None of the three went on to a fifty, and on a surface that had produced bigger totals all tournament, 164 looked at least twenty runs short of safe. It didn’t look like enough until the ball was in Narine’s hands.
He took 3 for 13, Holder added 3 for 31, and Washington Freedom’s chase came apart in pieces rather than one big collapse. Freedom needed 14 off the final over with wickets in hand, a total most sides in this tournament have chased down comfortably all season. Van Schalkwyk conceded a six off the first ball, then dismissed Pienaar and Holland in the same over, holding his nerve under real pressure for a one-run win sealed by a run-out off the final delivery of the match.
Ten Trophies, One Winning Blueprint
The MLC crown gives Knight Riders Sports its tenth global T20 trophy, spread across four franchises built under one ownership group.
Year | League | Team | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
2012 / 2014 | IPL | Kolkata Knight Riders | Champions (2 titles) |
2015 / 2017 / 2018 / 2020 | CPL | Trinbago Knight Riders | Champions (4 titles) |
2023 | ILT20 | Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | Champions |
2024 | IPL | Kolkata Knight Riders | Champions, Narine named MVP |
2025 | CPL | Trinbago Knight Riders | Champions |
2026 | MLC | Los Angeles Knight Riders | Champions |
Add up the full list and it reads three IPL titles for KKR, five CPL titles for TKR, one ILT20 crown for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, and now one MLC title for LAKR.
Three Leagues, Three Continents, Same Result
KKR lifted the IPL in 2024. TKR lifted the CPL in 2025. LAKR lifted the MLC this year. Narine and Russell featured in all three campaigns, meaning the pair have now won titles in three different leagues, on three different continents, across three successive seasons, a run no other pair in the format can currently claim.
Franchise T20 cricket produces plenty of one-off title runs, but very few players repeat the feeling of lifting a trophy in back-to-back years, let alone three straight in three separate competitions. That two teammates managed it together, not separately across different sides, is what turns this into a genuine dynasty argument.
Each Campaign Building on the Last
At KKR in 2024, Narine was tournament MVP, scoring 488 runs at a strike rate above 180 while taking 17 wickets in the franchise’s most dominant campaign in years, a rare double that decided matches on its own. TKR then won a fifth Caribbean title in 2025, Narine again central to the bowling attack. This year at LAKR, he collected the MLC season MVP award too, back-to-back-to-back individual honours alongside the team silverware. Russell’s power hitting mattered in all three campaigns, different grounds and opposition producing the same finishing power at the death.
A Franchise Model Built to Repeat
Knight Riders Sports is the only ownership group running four professional T20 franchises under one banner: KKR, TKR, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, and LAKR. Dwayne Bravo, LAKR’s head coach, captained TKR for six years before crossing over to coaching, one clear example of how deliberately the culture gets passed between franchises rather than staying local to one badge. Players, coaching staff and even recruitment philosophy move freely between the four sides, and Narine and Russell have simply been the most visible proof that the system produces winners wherever it is applied.
That model is exactly why Narine & Russell Knight Riders MLC 2026 title conversations keep circling back to the same names. The trophies move between continents. The two players delivering them do not change.
Which of the three titles, IPL 2024, CPL 2025 or this MLC crown, was the toughest for Narine and Russell to win? Tell us in the comments.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How many trophies has the Knight Riders group won globally?
Ten trophies across four franchises. That includes three IPL titles for KKR, five CPL titles for TKR, one ILT20 crown for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, and the MLC title won by Los Angeles Knight Riders.
What leagues have Narine and Russell won titles in over the last three years?
IPL, CPL and MLC, in that order. KKR won the IPL in 2024, TKR won the CPL in 2025, and LAKR won MLC this year, three different leagues on three continents.
What was Sunil Narine’s role in the LAKR final win?
He bowled 4 overs for 3 wickets, conceding just 13 runs. Those wickets came inside the powerplay against Washington Freedom’s top order, and he later picked up the tournament’s season MVP award.
Who owns the Los Angeles Knight Riders?
Knight Riders Sports Private Ltd, the group led by Shah Rukh Khan, Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta. The same ownership group also runs KKR, TKR and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders.
How many wickets did Narine take across the season?
He finished the tournament with 18 wickets in 11 matches. Fifteen of those came inside the powerplay, giving him the best economy and average among bowlers who sent down 15 or more overs.