When the T20 World Cup started in the USA, there were many doubts, if the event would be lost in the country once again. There have been repeated attempts by the ICC to revive and grow the sport in the country, but all failed ones. This time too, it was predicted that the USA cricket team, who has negligible representation from the local players, won’t perform very well, and crash out of the tournament early.
Cut to June 19, USA will play their first Super 8 match against South Africa in Antigua. And that might have given a new spurt to the sport there. Of course, Aaron Jones, and Saurabh Netravalkar, and Monank Patel are at the centre of their success, but it is still a grand occasion for the nation, who is perhaps the undisputed champion of all sports in the world.
Cricket Gets Noticed in USA as White House Wishes Team Luck
If there were any naysayers, who thought that the USA isn’t following their team’s progress, think again. Just recently, the Monank Patel-led team got best wishes for their Super 8 campaign. The wishes came from the White House National Security Communications Adviser, John Kirby.
Kirby said, “Congratulations to them. They’re in the Super 8 now. We all congratulate them on this success. It’s tremendous and we’re cheering them on.” In fact, he did not have be told the exact progress of the USA cricket team, which just shows, cricket somewhere has made the inroads in USA.
USA vs SA in Super 8
USA cricket team had started their World Cup campaign against Canada with an emphatic win while chasing 195. They followed it up with another win, when they beat Pakistan in the Super Over. Then they lost to India, and their match against Ireland was washed out due to rain. With five points in their kitty, they pipped Pakistan to make it to the Super 8.
