The U.S. cricket team toppled Pakistan, a powerhouse of the sport, in a stunning upset at the Men’s T20 World Cup in Dallas on Thursday.
The U.S., which is co-hosting the tournament with the West Indies, were given just a 7% chance of winning by some bookmakers before the match. But the U.S. team, which is competing in its first T20 World Cup, pulled off what has been described as one of the biggest shocks in cricket history and now look to have a good shot at qualifying for the next round, the Super 8 stage. Meanwhile Pakistan, champions in 2009 and runners-up in 2022, are at risk of an early exit from the tournament.
“I am really proud of the boys,” Monank Patel, the U.S. captain and player of the game, said after the win, which was achieved in a tie-breaking Super Over after the scores were level after 20 overs. “It was a complete team effort from ball one to the last ball.”
Aatif Nawaz, a British-Pakistani comedian and cricket commentator, took to X to express his surprise at the U.S. triumph. “Genuinely never thought I’d ever see that fixture, never mind that result,” he said.
Waqar Younis, a former player and coach of Pakistan’s national team, congratulated the U.S. for its “thumping victory,” adding that “Pakistan looked exhausted and helpless in the field.”
Americans, many acknowledging that they’re just now tuning into cricket, which doesn’t even break into the country’s top 20 favorite sports, celebrated the upset on social media. “Like six people total in this entire country know how to play cricket and they just beat Pakistan,” one X user posted. “Cricket twitter tried to beef with us so we decided to take over the sport within a few days LMAOOOOO,” another added.
Many marveled at the fact that U.S. star player Saurabh Netravalkar apparently has a day job as a software engineer.
But the T20 World Cup is hardly over, and the U.S. will have at least one more chance to defy expectations. Both Pakistan and the U.S. face No. 1-ranked India in their next matches in New York on Sunday and Wednesday, respectively.
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