[imagsource:paktribune]

The USA stunned cricket fans with a shocking victory over Pakistan in the T20 World Cup in Texas.

After both teams scored 159 in their 20 overs at Grand Prairie Stadium, the match proceeded to an extra over. USA, the tournament co-hosts and newcomers, then tied Pakistan’s total with 14 runs in the last over.

In the Super Over, the USA batted first and quickly put more pressure on their opponents, scoring 18 runs for one, including seven extras and 11 from Aaron Jones before he was run out.

After Iftikhar Ahmed superbly caught Nitish Kumar near the boundary, restricting Pakistan to five for none off three balls, USA bowler Saurabh Netravalkar held them back to help the US take a historic win.

USA captain Monank Patel, who won the official Player of the Match award, was understandably chuffed with their win. “Beating Pakistan, and playing for the first time, the way we played today I’m really proud of the boys,” he said.

“It was a complete team effort from first ball until the last ball. Winning the toss, we made sure that we utilized the conditions and credit to the bowlers.

“They kept them under 160 and we knew that 160 was chaseable target.”

Pakistan captain Babar Azam lamented his side’s batting in post-match interviews.

“We didn’t capitalise with the bat and they took a lot of momentum,” he said. “We lost back-to-back wickets in the middle overs. As a batting unit you need to step up, you need to create partnerships and we didn’t do that.

“Credit to USA, they performed so well. They were better than us in all aspects of the game.”

Group A leaders USA now have a fantastic chance of advancing to the Super 8s phase after defeating Canada by seven wickets in their opening match last Sunday. The top two finishers from each of the four groups advance to the tournament’s final eight.

The United States, who are sharing hosting duties with the West Indies, is hosting a major cricket tournament for the first time.

Patel is optimistic that their victory over Pakistan—the 2009 winners and two-time runners-up—will prove a significant turning point for the sport in the United States. “Certainly, defeating Pakistan in a World Cup will lead to numerous opportunities for us,” he remarked to CNBC.

“And people will know about it, such as the cricket community in the USA. It goes without saying that having the World Cup here in the United States and competing as a team helps to develop cricket in the country.”

In a similarly amusing story, South African bowling legend received some bowling tips from a US staff member who didn’t recognise the cricketer. The hilarious video had cricket fans giggling as the staff member told Steyn he “should bend his elbow when bowling and the ball should bounce before it hits the stumps”.

‘Muricaa!

[source:cnbc]