USA produced an emphatic turnaround in the T20 World Cup 2024 opener against Canada, successfully chasing down the target of 195 runs in Texas. After losing a few wickets early, USA saw Aaron Jones and Andries Gous score a half-century each, with the former finishing off the chase with just 6 runs shy of his hundred. Despite chasing a stiff target of 195 runs, USA reached the total with more than 2 overs to spare. For Canada, Navneet Dhaliwal and Nicholas Kirton scored a half-century each while Shreyas Movva produced a late cameo to take the team’s total to 194 runs.
Left-arm seamer Kaleem Sana gave Canada the perfect start, dismissing the dangerous Steve Taylor for a duck. Andries Gous joined skipper Monank Patel, and the duo tried to up the scoring rate with a flurry of boundaries.
Canada, however, maintained discipline with the ball and soon struck again with Monank’s wicket. The batter fell a run-a-ball 16 while trying to take on Dillon Heyliger. A 19-run over against Nikhil Dutta, featuring a six each for Andries Gous and Aaron Jones, helped pick the USA rate up. Jones continued to attack, hitting Canada skipper Saad Bin Zafar for a six and a four in the 10th over.
The duo continued going for their shots, and pumped up the USA scoring rate. From 81/2, USA added 45 runs over the next three overs. Jones hit three sixes off Saad in the 13th over, reaching the fastest T20I fifty for his side in the same over, from merely 22 balls. Gous reached a fifty off his own in the next over, and survived a scare after he hit one straight to Dilpreet off Gordon, but the pacer had bowled a no-ball. His partner, Jones took advantage of the free hit and hit his eighth six off the next ball. The duo brought up their 100-run stand off merely 45 balls.
Gous fell after a well-made 65, but by then USA were well ahead in the chase. Jones remained unbeaten for 94* from 40 balls, leading USA to a comfortable seven-wicket win.
Read more: https://thelocaljournalist.com/kkr-added-third-ipl-trophy-after-beating-srh/
