USA Triumphs Over Canada Again

The USA extended their winning streak against arch-rivals Canada for the second consecutive time, securing a commanding 50-run win.

Much like their previous encounter, Canada opted to bowl first after winning the toss, but this decision failed to influence the game’s outcome. Smit Patel, echoing his performance from the last match against Canada, delivered an impressive knock of 70 off 84 balls, featuring 11 boundaries. Following a disappointing lower-order collapse against the Netherlands, the USA's middle-order rose to the occasion, with Aaron Jones contributing a brisk half-century and Milind Kumar adding a rapid 47 off 33 deliveries. Their efforts propelled the USA to a solid total of 275, a challenging target at the associate level.

Canada’s fast bowlers struggled to make early inroads during the USA’s batting powerplay, allowing USA captain Monank Patel to bring on left-arm spinner Nosthush Kenjige from the very first over. The move paid off as Kenjige dismissed the dangerous Aaron Johnson, trapping him lbw for 10. Jasdeep Singh soon followed, bowling with discipline and shattering Dilpreet Bajwa’s stumps with a thin inside edge. Shadley Van Schalkwyk, who faced criticism for his batting in the USA’s narrow loss to the Netherlands, quickly redeemed himself. The 36-year-old struck twice in his second over, leaving Canada reeling at 44 for 4, with the quick dismissals of captain Nicholas Kirton and Harsh Thaker.

Pargat Singh and Shreyas Movva attempted to rebuild after Canada’s early collapse in the 12th over. However, the flurry of wickets forced them to adopt a cautious approach, adding just 23 runs over the next eight overs. Pargat, regaining his composure after the early setbacks, welcomed Kenjige back into the attack with a pair of well-timed boundaries. His aggressive intent also inspired Movva, who had been struggling with 6 runs off 35 balls, to punish Yasir Mohammad for a loose delivery. Pargat continued his assault, drilling Mohammad to the sight screen and reaching his half-century off 63 deliveries. Just as he began to look threatening, Mohammad struck back, catching Pargat at deep cover.

Although the 106-run partnership revived Canada’s hopes, Pargat’s dismissal made the remaining target of 124 runs off 95 deliveries appear daunting. Movva unleashed a few powerful shots to reach his second half-century of the tournament, but with minimal support from the other end, he succumbed to the mounting pressure, skying a delivery from Harmeet Singh to long-on. Harmeet then dismissed the big-hitting Dilon Heyliger, as Canada’s chase fell apart. Shadley returned to clean up the tail, finishing with impressive figures of 4 for 20 in 8 overs.

The match was set up by a clinical performance from the USA batters earlier in the day. Openers Steven Taylor and Smit Patel put on a 125-run stand, demoralising the Canadian bowlers. Taylor played a patient innings, scoring 46 off 77 balls after a series of low scores, while Smit was in fine form from the start, driving Heyliger to the boundary on the first ball of his innings. Smit continued to pierce the field with precise off-drives, notching up six boundaries by the end of the power play.

Smit maintained his aggressive approach, showcasing a variety of strokes. While he exploited the gaps during the power play with elegant drives, he also demonstrated his finesse with delicate touches. Saad Bin Zafar eventually broke the marathon partnership, catching an inside edge from Taylor that ballooned to the keeper. Zafar struck again in his next over, trapping Smit with a straight ball as he attempted a sweep.

With Monank Patel yet to find his rhythm, Aaron Jones took on an uncharacteristically aggressive role. He slashed a delivery from Joshi to the point boundary before launching Thaker over cow corner in the next over. Monank eventually fell for 26, bowled by a sharply turning delivery from outside leg stump as he attempted to play inside-out.

Fresh off his maiden international half-century against the Netherlands, Milind Kumar picked up where he left off. He and Jones milked the debutant Joshi, who conceded 77 runs without taking a wicket in his 10 overs. Jones departed shortly after reaching his 11th ODI half-century, surpassing captain Monank to become the USA’s highest half-century scorer in the format. After Jones’s departure in the 44th over, Milind came close to another half-century but was dismissed three runs short after going for one shot too many in the penultimate over. Despite this, the USA batters ensured a formidable first-innings total, bouncing back strongly from their previous game’s batting collapse.

Brief Scores:  

USA 275/8 in 50 overs (Smit Patel 70, Aaron Jones 50; Saad Bin Zafar 3-30, Kaleem Sana 2-39)  

Canada 225 all out in 47 overs (Pargat Singh 72, Shreyas Movva 68; Shadley van Schalkwyk 4-20)  

USA won by 50 runs.