But the American team’s accomplishment was nonetheless remarkable.
Against all odds, the U.S. men’s national cricket team advanced to the Super Eight round of the International Cricket Council T20 World Cup, defeating Canada and Pakistan. The win against Pakistan will go down as one of the greatest upsets in international cricket history. A team mostly composed of rejects from other countries’ cricket systems, some of whom have regular, full-time jobs, defeated Pakistan, a powerhouse with some of the most famous cricketers in the world.
In the Super Eight round, the U.S. was not so successful. In the first match against South Africa on Wednesday, the U.S. put up a very respectable 176 runs, 80 of which were scored by Andries Gous, who is among the tournament’s leading individual scorers. But the U.S. had conceded 194 and therefore came up short.
The other two matches were not so competitive. On Friday, the West Indies held the U.S. attack to only 128 runs, and on Sunday, England held the U.S. to only 115. These globally top-ranked teams easily eclipsed those low run totals to send the U.S. home.
But the U.S. team’s accomplishment this year was nonetheless remarkable. The U.S. had never before even participated in a T20 World Cup. It qualified by virtue of being one of the host countries, with matches played in New York, Texas, and Florida. To advance beyond the first round, which shaved 20 teams down to only eight, is a stunning feat for a team whose best bowler is a software engineer at Oracle.
U.S. head coach Stuart Law, a former player from Australia, said in an interview that people in New York City would notice his accent when the World Cup matches were being played there. “They say, ‘Are you here for the cricket?’ I say, ‘Well, I’m actually the head coach of USA.’ . . . They’re not a 100 percent sure what it is, but [they know] USA is involved and USA have won a couple of games. It has created a fantastic interest.”
Advancing to the Super Eight round this year means that the U.S. automatically qualifies for the next T20 World Cup in 2026, which will be played in India and Sri Lanka. The 2028 Summer Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles, will also include cricket, the sport’s first appearance in the games since 1900. In the next few years, the U.S. will have time to develop more talent and build on its performance from this year.
One way it is doing so is through Major League Cricket, a professional T20 cricket league that played its first season last year. Twenty20, or T20, cricket is a shortened form of the game in which each side is limited to 20 overs of six balls each, so matches take about three hours. Many of the players from this year’s World Cup team, in addition to numerous international players, will play in MLC this year.
Since last year, MLC was granted List-A status from the ICC, which means that its scores and statistics will be internationally recognized. This year’s season is six matches longer than last year’s. MLC also gained new sponsors, including IT company Cognizant as a title sponsor. The league was started with investments mostly from Indian-American business executives, along with Ross Perot Jr.
The MLC season runs from July 5 through July 28, with matches played near Dallas and Raleigh. If you live near either of those places and are a sports fan, I encourage you to check out a match, even if you don’t fully understand cricket. I went to the championship game last year and had a blast. You can read about that experience from the August 28, 2023, issue of National Review by clicking here. There’s already more cricket in the U.S. than you might expect, and the success of this year’s T20 World Cup team has spurred even more American interest in the world’s second-most-popular sport.