Major League Cricket (MLC) could become the biggest T20 franchise tournament in the world behind the Indian Premier League (IPL), Liam Plunkett says.

Former England fast bowler Plunkett, poised to make his debut for San Francisco Unicorns on Friday, has predicted a bold future for MLC.

“It can be right up there just behind the IPL,” Plunkett told BBC Sport.

“Obviously it will be hard to overtake the IPL but MLC is being taken very seriously and America is the biggest place in the world for sport.

“Let’s see where that ceiling is. Nobody knows and that’s the exciting part, it is unknown. There’s huge potential.”

The USA’s new T20 cricket league consists of a 19-game season played over two and a half weeks and features six teams – MI New York, Texas Super Kings, Los Angeles Knight Riders, Seattle Orcas, San Francisco Unicorns and Washington Freedom.

With seasoned T20 franchise and international players on show in Dallas, the cricket in the curtain raiser between the Super Kings and the Knight Riders was of a high calibre, and with no lack of passion on the field.

Super Kings captain Faf du Plessis fell for a first-ball duck on his birthday before Devon Conway (55) and David Miller (61) got their side to 181-6 as Lockie Ferguson claimed 2-23.

Andre Russell (55) spearheaded the Knight Riders response after a top-order collapse, but when he fell to Dwayne Bravo, the game was up for the LA franchise as they were dismissed for 112 in 14 overs.

US left-arm wrist spinner Mohammad Mohsin finished with an impressive 4-8 for the Texas franchise.

A slice of India in Texas

The paint was barely dry on the 7,000-capacity Grand Prairie Stadium – the former home of the Texas Airhogs baseball team – after the finishing touches were put on $20m redevelopment in the hours leading up to a highly anticipated opening fixture.

There had been a strong American feel to the build-up – the Super Kings players had posed for publicity photos in stetson hats, and the national anthem was played before the match – as is traditional at sports events in the USA.

But as the sun set and floodlights took over, the night air was filled the sound of whistles and bhangra drums. It looked and sounded more like Delhi than Dallas.

By the time of the first ball was bowled by USA national team bowler Ali Khan at 19:30 local time on Thursday (01:30 BST on Friday) the venue, officially sold out, was around two-thirds full.

The majority of the crowd were wearing or waving the yellow of the Super Kings, who are co-owned by their Chennai namesakes.

MLC has some significant backers, including Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella, and the organisers have made no secret of their desire to tap into the Indian diaspora numbering 4.6 million in the US.

Many are eager to be associated with the tournament. Australia’s Steve Smith, known for his savvy business decisions, announced on Wednesday that he had joined Washington Freedom as a brand ambassador.

Plunkett, who won the World Cup with England in 2019 before relocating to Philadelphia with his American wife, believes the development and growth of MLC could have lucrative spin-offs for cricketers by connecting them to the US.

The 38-year-old said: “Away from cricket, there are all sorts of different sponsorships and partnerships. Who knows where that is going to take some of the superstars of the game?

“When Americans get excited about something, they go above and beyond. Like the Indians, they are very passionate. With these players coming across, it shows there’s a massive excitement. They want to be here because if it takes off, it could be huge.”

England players face ‘difficult decision’ over MLC

Plunkett would “love to see” all England’s top players involved in future editions of MLC but it said would not be straightforward given a clash with the English summer.

MLC’s only other English representative, opener Jason Roy, decided to cancel his incremental white-ball contract with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to participate in the tournament.

Roy said his “priority is England” with a 50-over World Cup in October but could potentially earn £150,000 during MLC, more than double the deal he had with the ECB.

“It is trickier depending on what the contract situation is. If you feel like you are not getting paid your worth playing for England and a competition pops up which is twice your contract, then it can be conflicting,” added Plunkett, who played 13 Tests, 89 one-day internationals and 22 T20 matches for England.

“At the end of the day, you play cricket for the love of it but it’s like boxing prize money. You play because you love it, but also because it pays the bills.

“It’s going to be a tricky situation. The players are going to have some decisions to make. Especially for those playing in the franchise stuff back home.

“If you know if you can come across for a three-week period and get paid twice as much, then people are going to have to make difficult decisions.”