USA Triumphs Over Bangladesh in T20 World Cup Warm-Up
The USA cricket team has made a late surge in preparation for the historic T20 World Cup on their home turf. Their recent performance against Bangladesh at the Prairie View Complex on Tuesday indicates a promising tournament run.
Despite a shaky start with scores of 78/4 (11.4) and 94/5 (14.5) in their chase of 154, Corey Anderson and Harmeet Singh turned the tide in favor of the hosts. The duo dismantled Bangladesh’s bowling attack in the final five overs, scoring 62 runs in just 27 balls, and completed the chase with three balls to spare.
Former New Zealand international, Corey Anderson, delivered a performance reminiscent of his prime, scoring 34* off 25 balls. Harmeet Singh, a local favorite, justified the high expectations with a quickfire 33* off 13 balls, including 11 off the final three balls of the chase.
The pair successfully tackled Bangladesh’s bowling threats, particularly the world-class Mustafizur Rahman, who conceded 32 runs in the 17th and 19th overs. Despite claiming the wickets of Steven Taylor (28 off 29) and Aaron Jones (4 off 12), Rahman’s figures inflated from 2/9 in his first two overs to 2/41 (4) by the end of the day.
Earlier in the match, the American bowlers managed to restrict Bangladesh’s batters. The visitors found themselves in a tight spot at 68/4 (11.2) after the dismissal of Shakib Al Hasan (6 off 12).
Despite the efforts of Towhid Hridoy (58 off 47) and Mahmudullah (31 off 22) to push the run rate towards eight an over, the American bowlers, particularly Steven Taylor (2/9 off three overs) and Harmeet Singh (0/27 off 4), kept them to a manageable total.
With this victory, the Americans have now won five consecutive T20Is in 2024, including a 4-0 series win over Canada last month. They are now gearing up for two more T20Is against Bangladesh before their official warm-up matches from 29 May and their tournament opener against Canada in Dallas on 1 June.
‘Out of this World’ by Sean Paul and Kes: The official ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 anthem