MICT vs SEC

Finally, we bring curtains down on a tournament which has been really special in its quality, especially fielding and catching. MI Cape Town finished last on the points table in the first two years but in 2025, they were head and shoulders above the rest. They will be extremely proud of what they have achieved today and the owners and team management can celebrate the culture they have built in all the MI franchises. For the Sunrisers Eastern Cape, they scraped through to the final four but played exceptional cricket in the knockout stages up until the final where they came up against a much superior team, who blew them away to win their maiden title. Like always, it was a pleasure bringing all the live coverage from this encounter. Till the next time, this is myself (Arya Sekhar Chakraborty) signing off also on behalf of my fellow commentator and good mate Darpan Tikiya. Goodnight fellas! 

10:11pm local time [1:41am IST] - The skipper receives the trophy and the celebrations begin. A lot of cheering and howling. The shiny piece of silverware compliments the blue and gold perfectly. The fireworks in the background and the confetti flying over the head of the champions make it a picture to savour. 

Rashid Khan (MI Cape Town captain): "Throughout the tournament, the way we played.... Tonight was brilliant. We had a couple of tough seasons, but this year, topping the table. Highest points ever in three seasons. The way everyone responded...brilliant. Throughout the tournament, nobody played a selfish innings. Even if it was 10-15runs, it was for the team. You saw it today too. We lost wickets but everyone who came in played their natural game. Really enjoyed bowling with KG (Kagiso Rabada) and Trent Boult. Love being a part of this bowling unit. I missed the last season due to back injury. This year when I got the call, I was really excited. This franchise is one which has won everything around the world. So happy to be a part of this family."

Aiden Markram (Sunrisers Eastern Cape captain): We tried hard. We were always going to be under the pump against MI due to their exceptional batting line up but I felt that 180 was chaseable. They were swinging and nipping around. They bowled incredibly well, took wickets and we had to keep playing catch up. Didn't feel too much of defending the title but take nothing away from MI Cape Town. They played the best cricket. We fought hard, we didn't play the best cricket in the tournament. We will take a lot of positives from the tournament and especially the never say die attitude.

It's time for the Sunrisers Eastern Cape players to receive their runner-up medal. The runners-up cheque will now be presented to Aiden Markram.

Marco Jansen is also the Player of the Season. Here is what he has to say: "For me it was easy. Dale gave me all the advice last season and this year told me, 'Don't bowl like a poophole'. So that was easy. Alas, couldn't the team over the line. (About batting) I always try to learn from the top order guys, about technique and other things. They have been kind to help me. I try to take my team to the winning position and do my best everytime I walk on to the pitch. Sometimes I get a bit lucky."

Lhuan-dre Pretorius is the 'Batter of the Season', he says, "Yeah it was amazing. Just that I could score some runs. I was very nervous. Yeah I used to be a very defensive player but that has changed pretty fast. I learned a lot from Root, it will stick with me for a long time."

Dewald Brevis gets the 'Rising Star of the Season' award, he says, "Firstly, I want to thank god. I have been working really hard. There are a few things that I have changed. I am all for working hard. I love it (fielding). I want to contribute for the team in whatever way I can."

Robin Peterson (MI Cape Town head coach): "The biggest things was we gelled as a team both on and off the field. It was an amazing campaign. I am really impressed with Rashid Khan and the way he has led the team. I am chuffed that we could walk away with the spirit of cricket award as well. The team environment and the way the guys responded was superb. You can tell in the fielding. That was a great campaign."

Trent Boult is the Player of the Match, here is what he has to say, "First of all, with the bat, the boys played really well. But honestly,  was not done at the halfway point. I think we did well. It is a beautiful place to play cricket. The support has been great around the country.  From my point of view, not much experience of playing with the white ball in these parts of the world. But it swung at the right time. To lift the trophy would be really exciting and a great reward for the season. When I walked into the change room, I noticed that every player was ready to play for each other and those are signs of a good team."

9:37pm local time [1:07am IST] - The fans have still not left the stadium. They are in there, having the time of their lives. The DJ continues to blast some tunes for them to vibe to and the night sky is lit up by some glittery fireworks.