On Thursday, Team USA had a stunning upset in cricket, defeating Pakistan — a cricket powerhouse — by five runs. The win took place in the group stage of the T20 World Cup, a tournament of the 20 best qualifying cricket teams in the world.
This year’s T20 World Cup is the U.S.’s first time qualifying after receiving an automatic bid for hosting. The 2024 T20 tournament is jointly hosted by the U.S. and the West Indies. Thursday’s upset, played in Dallas, puts the U.S. at the top of Group A, which also includes India, Canada and Ireland.
The win took place after a tense super over, a tiebreaking method in cricket similar to a penalty shootout. The U.S. finished the super over with 18 runs, meaning that Pakistan needed 19 to win; however, Team USA held on and Pakistan ended with 13 runs, giving the Americans the historic win.
The home win is a particularly big deal for Team USA given that cricket is largely not a popular sport in the U.S. Most American cricket players don’t play the sport full-time: One of the heroes of the game, pace bowler Saurabh Netravalker, works full time at software company Oracle.
This win may mark a turning point for the sport in the U.S.: By making such a big splash in its first World Cup, USA Cricket can only go up from here.
USA DEFEATS PAKISTAN AT THE T20 CRICKET WORLD CUP
ONE OF THE BIGGEST UPSETS IMAGINABLE
PAKISTAN MADE THE FINAL LAST TIME. JUST USA’S SECOND WORLD CUP MATCH EVER… AND WEVE WON THEM BOTH!!! pic.twitter.com/l1AGYFtBFW
— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) June 6, 2024
The U.S. next faces India, another formidable opponent in cricket, on June 12 for the next group stage match.
This story will be updated.
Source Agencies
