Che: United States vs. Canada
What: ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Group 1 match
when: Saturday 1 June, 7.30pm local time (03.30 GMT, 2 June)
pigeon: Grand Prairie Stadium, Texas, USA
Finally he arrived.
We are now just hours away from the long-awaited arrival of North America’s biggest cricket party, and who better than the two teams to play the first recorded international cricket match in history.
When the United States hosts Canada in the opening match of the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup in Dallas, Texas on Saturday, much more will be at stake than just avenging a century-old defeat.
The United States, making their first appearance at the ICC World Cup, will look to build on their recent dominance over their northern neighbors and get the tournament off to a winning start.
Canada, which has previously competed in the ICC 50-over World Cup, will also make its debut in the T20 edition of the tournament.
It is a historic moment for the American team to be in elite competition after decades spent stuck in smaller tournaments.
“For the last couple of years we’ve been talking about playing in a World Cup, about taking American cricket to greater levels,” US vice-captain Aaron Jones said before the opening match.
“You play [in] The World Cup is probably the highest [so far]”.
USA seeks support from fans who were born and raised in America
Jones says his team is determined to play “gritty” cricket.
There is pressure on the United States, as the hosts of the tournament, along with the West Indies, to deliver a strong performance on home soil.
Cricket captains view the short, exciting format of the game as the perfect version to capture the imagination of America’s mainstream sports fans, and Jones says the team does not want to be afraid to attack.
“Courageous cricket, positive cricket, smart cricket. I think that’s what we’re really trying to do,” Jones said in a press conference.
“We don’t want to regret anything. If we come out on top, that’s great. If we don’t come out on top, that’s how cricket goes sometimes. But we don’t want to regret anything,” he added.
Jones was born in New York but grew up in Barbados, which he represented early in his career, before returning to the United States to join the team.
He realizes the team has the added responsibility of being ambassadors for the sport when it plays in Texas, Florida and New York.
“What you do on the field is very important, but things off the field are also very important, especially since we are a country that does not know much about cricket,” he said.
“We want to get the fans on their feet; We want to get more support from people who are born and raised in America and I think we can only do that by playing well and interacting with the fans or increasing the number of fans outside the stadium as well.
#TeamUSA He is preparing for a historic confrontation against Canada in the opening match of the tournament @International Criminal Court @T20WorldCup tomorrow! 🔥🤩💪
Don’t have tickets yet? Buy it online 📲: https://t.co/sNaRIqkaLn#T20WorldCup | #WeareUSACricket 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/ZGlpvCGvQs
— USA Cricket (@usaricket) May 31, 2024
Canada is ready for “tough competition”
Meanwhile, Canadian captain Saad Bin Dhafar believes his team is under no pressure and is equally keen to express themselves.
Dhofar told reporters on the eve of the match: “Everyone is eager to leave. Everyone is in a good mood to perform.”
The United States has had the upper hand over Canada in the last few matches, and Dhofar wants his team to win the opening match of the tournament.
“We’re competitors, and we tend to play against each other a lot,” he said.
Zafar added: “There are many friendships between the two countries at the same time.”
“Now, because it’s the World Cup, it’s a big stage, and both countries want to outdo their opponents.
“I think we will have a good, tough competition and both teams will entertain the fans.”
here @t20worldcup Group stage schedule for Team Canada 🇨🇦💪
Watch it live on Willow TV#t20worldcup #International Criminal Court #wecancricket #cricketcanada pic.twitter.com/cC8ihYhpdr
— Cricket Canada (@canadiancricket) May 31, 2024
face to face
The North American rivals have met seven times in T20 matches, with the USA winning five times and Canada winning twice.
Four of these wins came in the recent five-match T20 series, which saw one match called off due to inclement weather.
Modulo
The United States enters the T20 World Cup on the back of a stunning 2-1 win over Bangladesh, which was loaded with big names like Shakib Al Hasan, Mustafizur Rahman and skipper Najm Hossain Shanto.
Canada’s last T20 match was against the United States in the five-match series which they lost 4-0 and will look to put things right.
United States of America: LWWWW
Canada: last
US national team news
The co-hosts go into the match happy with the success of their series win and will not be looking to tinker with the lineup that led them to a 2-1 win.
US Team: Monank Patel (captain), Shayan Jahangir, Andris Goss, Nitish Kumar, Steven Taylor, Harmeet Singh, Corey Anderson, Milind Kumar, Nisarj Patel, Shadlee van Schalkwyk, Ali Khan, Jesse Singh, Saurabh Netravalkar, Nostosh Kenjiji.
News about the Canadian national team
Having completed just one of their two pre-tournament warm-up matches, Canada will be hoping the team that beat Nepal last week can improve on their North American neighbors and get off to a winning start.
Canadian team: Saad Bin Zafar (Capitano), Navneet Dhaliwal, Aaron Johnson, Ravinderpal Singh, Kanwarpal Tathgur, Shreyas Mova, Dillon Heliger, Dilpreet Bajwa, Harsh Thakur, Jeremy Gordon, Junaid Siddiqui, Kaleem Sana, Nicholas Kirton, Parjat Singh, Rayyan Khan Pathan.
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