The United States of America created history by beating Pakistan at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas. They looked brilliant right from the start and executed their plans well to cause an upset in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. The Monank Patel-led side picked wickets at regular intervals in the first innings and the batters did their job perfectly but yet, the match was in balance at one point.
Chasing 160 runs, Monank gave a good start to USA in the second innings. The skipper led by example and hit a half-century but couldn’t help his team get over the line. However, when he got out, the match was pretty much in favour of the USA. Things eventually got complicated but the hosts managed to keep calm as the match ended on level terms.
In the Super Over, Pakistan completely messed it up. Mohammad Amir leaked 18 runs for the Men in Green, which pushed their chances. The ace pacer bowled multiple extras, which played a massive role in Pakistan’s defeat. When it came to the chase, they could score 13 runs and lost the match by five runs. With that, USA are currently at the top of the points table in the Group A of T20 World Cup 2024.
Talking Points
1. Fantastic outing of the bowlers
USA bowlers were phenomenal in the first innings. Nosthush Kenjige picked up three crucial wickets of Usman Khan, Shadab Khan and Azam Khan while Saurabh Netravalkar gave away just 18 runs in his four overs and picked up two wickets. They kept Pakistan batters under check and restricted them to 159 runs, which was incredible.
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2. Skipper leading from the front
Monank was superb on the night and played a crucial role in USA’s win. They needed a good start and that’s exactly what he provided. He built the foundation, which the middle-order batters later capitalized.
3. Mohammad Amir cost Pakistan the game
Leaking 18 runs in the Super Over is never ideal and that too from an experienced pacer. He bowled multiple extras which built pressure on Pakistan and USA took complete advantage of that. Aaron Jones and Harmeet Singh deserve a lot of credit for their running between the wickets.
Who Said What?
Losing skipper Babar Azam said:
First 6 overs while batting we didn’t capitalise. Back to back wickets always put you on the back foot, as a batter you need to step up and build partnerships. We were not up to the mark in the first 6 overs with the ball. Our spinners also did not take wickets in the middle overs so these things cost us. Very hard, all credit to USA, they played better than us in all three departments. Little bit of moisture in the pitch, it was also two-paced. As a professional you need to assess the conditions.
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Winning skipper and POTM Monank Patel said:
Winning the toss and the way we bowled in the first 6 overs, we took wickets and kept them quiet. We knew they will take chances after their partnership. We knew we were in the game with 160 to chase, just needed a partnership. Playing in a World Cup, you don’t get a chance to do it every year. We were fully committed every single ball.
It is a big achievement, beating Pakistan and that too playing (them) for the first time. It was a complete team effort. We won the toss and we made sure we utilised the conditions well, we did really well to keep them under 160. I am happy with my contribution and more happy that we won the game. We spoke about the top three contributing and happy that myself and Gous could do that. The plan was to play proper shots and he (Gous) took the pressure off me. Happy to get the two points. As a batter and player you want to show off in the big games and I am happy that my knock came in a winning cause.
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