The United States beat cricket heavyweight Pakistan on Thursday, marking a first disappointment at the T20 World Cup, a historic victory for a country where most people have a mild understanding of the rules of the game.
The U. S. earned a seven-wicket victory over Canada in its opener. Aaron Jones, who shot an unbeaten 40 steals out of 94 against Canada, once played for the tournament co-host when he extended play to the super-over with 36 majors. not 26.
Jones hit a six off Haris Rauf and then a single before Nitish Kumar’s limit on the final ball tied the score at 159 at the end of regulation time when Pakistan’s experienced fast pitcher gave away 14 runs on the final six balls.
Pakistan panicked in the supermarket when experienced fastball bowler Mohammad Amir of Shaheen Shah Afridi allowed 18 runs, adding seven runs on wide balls as Jones broke an opposite boundary to the left arm setter.
Speedy left-arm pitcher Saurabh Netravalkar, who had played brilliantly in the past and won 2-18 in his 4 overs, conceded just thirteen runs in the super over to give the United States their biggest ever Twenty20 victory over 2009 champions Pakistan.
Iftikhar Ahmed broke the limit on Netravalkar’s second ball, before retiring for a while as the left-arm player kept his cool and pulled off an outstanding victory for the United States.
In addition to his cricket career, Netravalkar is also a PC software engineer and works at Oracle in the San Francisco Bay Area, according to his LinkedIn profile.
“It’s a wonderful achievement to beat Pakistan when they were playing for the first time (against them),” U. S. captain Monank Patel said. “We used situations well (and) kept them at 160, which was possible. “
It was a disastrous start for captain Babar Azam’s Pakistan, who will face rivals India on Sunday in New York.
“All credits go to the United States, which performed well in all three slots and that’s why they won,” Babar said. “We couldn’t capitalize on the first six overs. We gained momentum, but consecutive terrains hurt us. “
The Americans looked set to disappoint Pakistan in regulation time when captain Patel hit 50 of 38 balls and, along with Andries Gous (35), led the home team to 104-1 in thirteen overs before Pakistan rallied and swept both batters. successive overs while the United States finished at 159-3.
Patel and Ghous added 68 runs for second ground as Pakistan’s four-man attack led by Shaheen Shah Afridi failed to faze them and Shadab Khan had also watched, before Amir gave Pakistan a glimmer of hope.
Amir had Patel get stuck in a slow cutter and Ghous was cleanly defeated through Rauf. But Rauf, who won the finale with a 15-run cushion, couldn’t stop Jones and Kumar from turning the game into a two-hitter-big superfinale. in the last 3 installments.
Pakistani hitters, who have been battling for a year in the sport’s shortest format, were further exposed to some disciplined American bowlers after Patel won the toss and opted to line up and face opposition 159-7.
The reunion of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan as the starting pair may just get them out of trouble and the middle order stuttered on slow ground.
Steven Taylor gave the home team a better start when he made a brilliant one-handed catch inches off the turf to beat Rizwan at the opposite time to Netravalkar.
Nosthush Kenjige’s (3-30) left-arm rotation also upset Pakistan’s power hitters when Usman Khan made a reckless throw and punched a hole, while Fakhar Zaman’s weak ramp shot failed to clear the short-legged, skinny defender. A circle of . -yards as Pakistan fell to 26-3 in the fifth.
Babar (44) and Shadab Khan (40) tried to regain momentum and lifted a 72-run position before Kenjige broke the threatening position on 13 when Shadab brilliantly damaged Netravalkar on a short, thin leg and ‘Azam Khan pinned the leg before the porthole. on the first ball through the left arm spinner.
Babar, who is the most level-headed T20 runner in the world and surpassed Virat Kohli’s 4,038-point total, looked tough on his 43-ball shot that included two sixes and 3 limits before dropping in weight to Jasdeep Singh’s delivery on the 16th as Pakistan fell to 125-6.
It was only thanks to Shaheen Shah Afridi’s 23 balls out of 16, adding two late sixes, that they raised Pakistan’s overall in overs to death.