Liam Plunkett (Image credit: MLC) Liam Plunkett is no stranger to cricketing revolutions. A 2019 World Cup winner with England and one of the sport’s seasoned globe-trotters, Plunkett is now at the forefront of a new frontier: cricket in the United States. As a senior figure with the San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket (MLC), he has embraced the dual role of player and ambassador, helping build a foundation for the sport in a country still learning its cricketing ABCs.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Plunkett’s deep connection to the US goes beyond cricket — his American wife and long-standing ties to the country have made the transition seamless. But what drives him now is the chance to shape something meaningful from the ground up. From coaching kids to helping launch coaching pathways through his online platform, Plunkett is laying bricks at every level — grassroots to elite.In this wide-ranging interview with TimesofIndia.com, he opens up about the evolution of cricket in America, the challenges of infrastructure and education, the vision behind the San Francisco Unicorns, and how data, heart, and hustle are shaping a distinctly American version of the gentleman’s game.Excerpts:Q. You’ve been one of the early ambassadors for the sport in the US. What has the evolution of cricket been like, in your opinion, and has there been any culture shock since you arrived? Liam Plunkett: I’ve been coming back and forth for a very long time now, my wife’s from America. So we’re talking maybe 17-18 years ago that I’ve been back and forth. So in terms of me being here, it’s been a slow and steady kind of integration. So I’m kind of used to the culture, used to what’s going on. In terms of the cricket side of that, it wasn’t until probably 12-13 years (ago) that I realised there was a big cricket presence here. I went to bowl at an indoor school before I was then going to play in a series with England in Sri Lanka. And then I found out it there was an indoor school here. There’s 25 games here, 25 games here. And then I realised there’s a lot of cricket here. So that was very surprising to me. And then, the last three years, this is my fourth year in the States now and I’m happy that I’ve been involved from the rookies coming through at a very young age all the way to a Major League now. It’s been nice to see how it works, how the system works. And definitely over the last three-four years, things have progressed. You can see that by Major League, the standard of cricket that is, the superstars that come across that are representing the franchises. So it’s definitely been an evolution. Obviously, the Cricket World Cup was in America last year, and we’ve seen the Eisenhower Park with that stadium. And there was packed out crowds watching it. And obviously, India, Pakistan’s always going to get them huge crowds in. But even the other games I went to, there was big crowds. And obviously, USA cricket doing well, beating in Pakistan, beating Canada, and getting through to the Playoffs in the Caribbean. But it’s difficult, isn’t it? Because I know the circles I’m with, everyone knows cricket, even in America. It’s like everyone I associate myself with, cricket’s growing, cricket’s growing. And then you can go down the road and no one’s ever seen the game. So it’s like you’re in their pockets. Major League Cricket: Liam Plunkett on how cricket can boom in the USA Q. You’ve played in the IPL, come from a country like England where cricket is extremely popular. And then you go to the US, where you have to explain the basics of the sport. How much of a challenge is that? Liam Plunkett: In terms of being here, in terms of the South Asian influence and the parents who’ve come across to work here and introduce cricket to the kids, they know the basics, they know what cricket is, they know how big cricket is, because it’s passed down through the family. So it’s not really teaching these guys or girls what cricket is… It’s like, ‘Okay, well, this is a basic level. How can I help you step up?’ Because a lot of people need that coaching education. And that was one of my main aims coming over here after being here six months was how can I help the coaches improve. Because you can’t just do it as one person. You have to obviously have people in different venues, and how can we educate these coaches to be able to teach that, pass that through that pipeline? But there’s so much here now where there’s a lot of academies popping up left, right and centre who are teaching the kids, this is cricket, this is the basics. And I think that’s important. I think we don’t forget about that. We see in terms of the stadiums where people are playing at now in terms of Grand Prairie, the Oakland Coliseum, but let’s not forget the grassroots, because in 5, 10, 15 years, they’re the kids who are going to be taking our places. Q. Do you recall a moment where you had to explain the sport, and you’ve been a little surprised by how challenging that could be? Liam Plunkett: When I first started coming across, when I was playing international cricket and I pop over here, maybe we had a break for four-or-five weeks and I come across to be with my wife – my girlfriend at that time – people would say, well, what’s cricket? Do you sit on a horse? Are you hitting the ball underneath with a giant hammer? But yeah, you kind of explain it. I kind of go by the rule: it’s like baseball, but a lot better, a lot quicker. You can score 360. And yeah, a pitcher, even if…
