Sports
A day to believe cricket is not just an American Dream
Saurabh Netravalkar moved to the United States in 2015. He was 23 and had accepted a difficult reality. He wasn’t going to be a professional cricketer.
“It was a very emotional call,” Netravalkar said in an interview last year. “I packed my bags and moved to the US to study. I never dreamt that I’d get to play cricket again. I didn’t even bring my cricket shoes.”
A decade later and Netravalkar is stood at the top of his mark in a World Cup, tasked with bowling the Super Over against Pakistan that will earn USA cricket the biggest win in their history.
“It’s a very humbling feeling that life has given me a second chance to pursue what I love doing,” Netravalkar said. “And I really feel that bliss as soon as I walk onto the field to play competitive cricket.”
As Netravalkar bowled, the bliss was evident. Ten minutes earlier, Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir, a veteran of over 100 international matches and a 2009 T20 World Cup winner, had lost his cool in a nine-ball over that went for 18. But Netravalkar, an eight-year veteran of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, where he continues to work full time, held his nerve. Dot, four, wide, wicket and the match was done.
To this day, Netravalkar’s Twitter bio lists his role as a Principal Member of Technical Staff at Oracle, first, and Professional Cricketer at USA Cricket, second. It is time to swap those around.
For many, this result was a confirmation of what they already knew. That cricket’s potential in this country is immense, with the challenge being harnessing it.
Those facts were evident in the aftermath of Netravalkar sealing victory. A historic win, met with as much an outpouring of relief as an explosion of joy.
USA were full value for their win. And had they not crossed the line, the reaction wouldn’t have been pats on the back and better luck next time, but a side of quality professionals bereft at the opportunity they’d let slip. After the first eight overs of Pakistan’s innings, the visitors were 40 for 3. And with seven overs to go of USA’s, they were 104 for 1 with only 56 left to win.
In both instances, Pakistan pulled it back, but far from being a day belonging solely to Netravalkar, it was one that highlighted the depth of US cricket and the playing ability below the big names.
For all the noise of parachuted players like Corey Anderson who flipped nations after a successful international career with New Zealand, this was an Anderson-less victory. His sole contribution to the match was a single over that went for six runs.
Instead, the heroes were lesser known figures such as captain Monank Patel, who made 50 off 38 balls, Nosthush Kenjige and Nitish Kumar.
Kenjige, born in Alabama but raised in Karnataka, took 3 for 30 in his first match of the competition. He moved back to the States in 2015 and worked as a hospital technician. When he decided he wanted to requalify for the US as a cricketer, he’d work from 9-5 before driving to an indoor centre from 6-10 in order to complete the 800 hours of coaching that were necessary to prove to the ICC that someone had “a commitment to the local community.” This isn’t a team of people mumbling the national anthem with a new badge on their chest, but a group of players living out, if not their childhood dream, then their adult one.
That context applies to Nitish, who was born in Canada and represented them in the 2011 ODI World Cup as a 16-year-old, before switching nations in 2020.
World Cups provide the opportunity for people to live out their dreams, but they also offer the opportunity for people to live out their nightmares. And with one ball of USA’s innings to go, Nitish was experiencing the latter.
Arriving at the crease at No.5 with 49 required off 35 balls, he went boundary-less for a tortured 10 not out off 13. Off the final ball of the innings, he managed to chip a low full toss over mid-off and to the boundary to force a Super Over. He’ll remember this day for the rest of his life, and mercifully, for good reasons rather than bad.
However, throughout the hysteria and the joy, there was also a reminder of the challenges that cricket in the USA faces. Five days ago, Aaron Jones, who shone once again here with 36 off 26 before playing the defining batting role in the Super Over, inspired a roaring stadium with the innings of a lifetime.
The fist pumps that followed each boundary on Saturday night were back again this Thursday afternoon, but rather than revving up an adoring home crowd, they were defiant in the face of a more sparsely attended stadium consisting mainly of Pakistani supporters.
“We knew that we don’t have support from the crowd,” captain Patel said after play. “Pakistan had more support from the crowd and I thought it would backfire on them…they’ll be under more pressure.”
This World Cup in the USA is primarily about harnessing the interest that already exists here rather than expanding it. A position that carries with it pragmatic strengths, but blue-sky weaknesses.
For instance, the broadcaster carrying the World Cup in North America is Willow. A cricket specialist channel that if you’re an existing fan is gold dust as it carries almost any match that’s happening on the planet. But if you’re not an existing fan, you don’t even have the opportunity to accidentally scroll onto it as you’re flicking through channels. You won’t even know it’s not there.
America loves winners. But largely America doesn’t know it currently has one in its cricket team. Through Major League Cricket and the national side, they have the money and the quality to look after the short term of the game. And in growing diasporas such as the Nepali community that saw 5,500 people turn up to the middle of Texas to watch their match against Netherlands, they have the genuine interest and passion to look after it in the long term.
Far from just having the opportunity to grow the game, American cricket has a responsibility to, because if they get it right, this is a fairytale that’s only just beginning.
Sunrisers Hyderabad’s philosophy of living by the sword and dying by it led them to their second successive defeat, against Delhi Capitals in Vizag. Mitchell Starc picked his maiden T20 fifer to keep SRH down to 163 despite Aniket Verma’s six-hitting exhibition in a 41-ball 74 before the DC top-order chased it down with 7 wickets and four overs to spare.
Where the match was won?
SRH were hamstrung in the PowerPlay with four dismissals. They got six more than Delhi Capitals did in this phase but it was the repercussions of this phase that led them to an under-par total.
The PowerPlay difference
| Parameters | SRH | DC |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 58/4 | 52/0 |
| Run-rate | 9.67 | 8.67 |
| 4s/6s | 7/1 | 4/3 |
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Powerplay: Starc removes top-order
Phase score: 58/4 [RR: 9.67, 4s/6s: 7/1]
Pat Cummins became the first captain this season to bat first after winning the toss but his high-flying top-order was quickly dismantled by Mitchell Starc. Abhishek Sharma was run out after a mix-up between the openers after which Mitchell Starc took out Ishan Kishan, Nitish Reddy and Travis Head by the fifth over. With that, since IPL 2024, Starc has 8 wickets in 11 overs against SRH in PowerPlay. SRH should’ve been five down before the end of the PowerPlay, but Abishek Porel put down a catch to offer Aniket Verma a reprieve.
Middle-overs: Aniket flies but DC retain control
Phase score: 82/3 [RR: 9.11, 4s/6s: 4/6]
Aniket flexed his muscles against DC’s spinners, starting out by hitting Vipraj Nigam for a six and a four in the seventh over. In the next over, he tonked Axar for two successive sixes and also went after Mohit Sharma. Heinrich Klaasen then welcomed Kuldeep Yadav with a straight six to press on with the fifth-wicket stand. They took the team past 100 by the halfway stage but DC hit back through an excellent catch from Vipraj Nigam that sent the South African back. Kuldeep and Axar then bowled three excellent overs, conceding just eight in it. Aniket meanwhile got to his maiden IPL half-century and went after Axar once again in a 17-run 15th over.
Death overs: Starc bundles out SRH with fifer
Phase score: 23/3 [RR: 6.27 4s/6s: 1/1]
Aniket departed in the 16th over chasing another big six, falling for a 41-ball 74. Starc then came back to quickly wrap the innings up in the 19th over, dismissing Harshal Patel and Wiaan Mulder. While SRH finished on 163, the Aussie quick walked away with figures of 5-35, his first fifer in T20 cricket.
Delhi Capitals
PowerPlay: SRH toil in wicketless phase
Phase score: 52/0 [RR: 8.67, 4s/6s: 4/3]
Faf du Plessis and Jake Fraser-McGurk started well, taking on all four of the bowling options that Cummins threw at them in the PowerPlay. Harshal Patel bowled a good first over but Cummins himself was taken apart for 13 runs. Shami started well but erred in his second to let DC control the game at the start of their chase.
Middle-overs: Zeeshan Ansari strikes thrice but DC march on
Phase score: 98/3 [RR: 10.88, 4s/6s: 9/4]
SRH’s young leggie Zeeshan Ansari picked three wickets but it didn’t alter the course of the proceedings as the hosts galloped along towards the target through different batters. Du Plessis got to a 26-ball half-century while McGurk too showed urgency before falling to the spinner. DC had 96 on the board at the halfway stage, being comfortably ahead of the asking rate. KL Rahul marked his DC debut by smashing Shami for two fours and a six in the 11th over. Abishek Porel then walked out and seamlessly carried on with the run-making, hitting Ansari for a four and a six in the 14th over. DC got to 150/3 in 15 overs, with only 13 more to get at the death.
Death-over: Six balls to wrap it up
Phase score – 16/0 [RR: 16.00, 4s/6s: 2/1]
Porel went after Wiaan Mulder in the 16th over to complete the commanding victory.
Brief Scores:
Sunrisers Hyderabad 163 in 18.4 overs (Aniket Verma 74, Heinrich Klaasen 32, Travis Head 22; Mitchell Starc 5-35, Kuldeep Yadav 3-22, Mohit Sharma 1-25) lost to Delhi Capitals 166/3 in 16 overs (Faf du Plessis 50, Jake Fraser-McGurk 38, Abishek Porel 34*, KL Rahul 15, Tristan Stubbs 21*; Zeeshan Ansari 3-42) by 7 wickets
What next?
Sunrisers head to Kolkata where they face KKR on April 3 while Delhi Capitals have a longer break before taking on CSK in Chennai on April 5.
Rajasthan Royals clinched a thrilling six-run victory over Chennai Super Kings to bring up their first win of IPL 2025. Starring with the bat for the Royals was Nitish Rana who hit a powerful 81 before Wanindu Hasaranga helped defend the total with crucial strikes right through .
Where was the match won?
While Rana’s onslaught in the powerplay set RR up to get a total that was above-par, CSK had managed to pull things back at the back-end. In the chase, however, RR managed to keep things in control with regular strikes right through. The chief architect of that was Wanindu Hasaranga who struck at important junctures not allowing CSK to get away.
RAJASTHAN ROYALS
Powerplay – Nitish Rana runs amok
Phase score – 79/1 [RR: 13.16; 4s/6s: 9/5]
Nitish Rana found himself coming in just the first over of the innings after Yashasvi Jaiswal chipped a simple catch to mid off. What had started off well for Khaleel Ahmed and CSK, who had opted to bowl, soon took a turn for the worse. Rana hit the second ball he faced for a boundary to get going. Jamie Overton, making his IPL debut, was carted for 14 runs in his first over and 16 in his next as CSK struggled to get their lengths right. In a bid to shake up things, R Ashwin was brought in but Rana employed the sweep behind square to good effect as RR picked up 19 in that over. Khaleel erred in lengths once again in his third over of the powerplay and allowed Rana to cash in further on a surface that was not offering much for the bowlers. Out of RR’s 79 inside the powerplay, Rana alone accounted for 58.
Middle overs – Spinners pull things back for CSK
Phase score – 66/4 [RR: 7.33; 4s/6s: 4/2]
Rana remained CSK’s biggest threat from one end but Noor Ahmed managed to strike straightaway at the other bagging a well-set Sanju Samson caught at long off. It helped apply the brakes on the scoring-rate although RR had a good base already. Rana though was taking one of CSK’s main weapon in R Ashwin out sweeping him for another four and a six when the offspinner returned. But Ashwin had the last laugh throwing one wide when Rana danced down the track early to be stumped for a 36-ball 81. This helped further CSK’s cause as they applied the squeeze through their spinners. Both Ahmed and Ravindra Jadeja chipped in getting Dhruv Jurel and Wanindu Hasaranga caught off mishits as CSK bounced back successfully.
Death overs – RR stutter at the finish
Phase score – 37/4 [RR: 7.4; 4s/6s: 2/2]
Riyan Parag and Shimron Hetmyer, who was dropped first ball, were the only other batters from RR who found the boundaries apart from the top-order. But neither could get them at the frequency that RR would have liked. Parag was yorked by Pathirana in the 18th over while Hetmyer was caught in the final over. Through it all CSK stitched together overs without boundaries that helped keep them in the game. RR still managed to get past 180 thanks to the initial onslaught from Rana.
CHENNAI SUPER KINGS
Powerplay – Blows exchanged in tight phase
Phase score – 42/1 [RR: 7; 4s/6s: 6/1]
The Guwahati pitch began to assist the pacers more as the game progressed and both Jofra Archer and Tushar Deshpande extracted appreciable bounce from it straihgtaway. The former got one of the balls to kick up and angled across Rachin Ravindra to have him caught behind. Shot-making was not easy through the line in this phase with Ruturaj Gaikwad also being struck on the elbow once. After Archer’s maiden over to start, CSK had put on only 5 on the board after the first three overs. But gradually both Gaikwad and Rahul Tripathi found other ways to get the boundaries. They began to use the pace behind square on the onside and put the bowlers off their lengths. As a result, CSK got some useful boundaries in the latter half of the powerplay which helped get the chase back on track.
Middle overs – Hasaranga keeps CSK in check
Phase score – 80/3 [RR: 8.88; 4s/6s: 6/3]
This was a phase of play that CSK were threatening to break free with wickets in hand. But Rajasthan were almost single-handedly kept in the game by Wanindu Hasaranga’s three strikes through the middle overs. He struck with his first ball having Tripathi caught at deepmidwicket. But CSK had their best spin-hitter in Shivam Dube walk in and he took the attack straight back to Hasaranga hitting him for a six down the ground. He continued the onslaught in Hasaranga’s next over hitting him for a four and a six, readying to get that one big over that could tilt the equation. But Dube fell immediately after thanks to a magical catch at cover by a diving Riyan Parag. But CSK hit back through their skipper Gaikwad who picked up three boundaries off Kumar Kartikeya to keep the run-rate up. When he needed more support at the other end, Vijay Shankar briefly promised to do so hitting Hasaranga for a six but only to be fooled by a googly off the very next ball. Gaikwad brought up his fifty soon after but heading into the final five overs, CSK needed 61 with a set Gaikwad being their biggest bet.
Death overs – CSK fall just short
Phase score – 54/2 [RR: 10.8, 4s/6s: 2/4]
Hasaranga once again played his part in the final overs with Gaikwad trying to take charge. CSK’s captain managed to tonk Hasaranga down the ground for a crucial six but became the legspinner’s fourth victim of the night when he holed out to long on next ball to fall for 63. Hasaranga finished with figures of 4-35 and ensured that he played a major part in RR’s defence of a middling total. For CSK, the onus lied on Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni to make a match out of this in the final stages of the game. RR got back Matheesha Theekshana for the 18th over and the spinner conceding only six with no boundaries, leaving CSK needing 39 off 12. Both the experienced campaigners picked up a six apeice from Tushar Deshpande’s penultimate over and got 19 in all leaving Sandeep Sharma to defend 20 in the final over. Interestingly, RR had turned to him even though jofra Archer [3-1-13-1] had an over left. But to their relief, Sharma saw Dhoni drag a low full toss wide of deepmidwicket where Hetmyer took a sharp running catch under pressure. Sharma saw off the threat from debutant Overton, who lofted him for one six, to eventually take RR home as CSK fell 6 runs short.
Brief Scores:
Rajasthan Royals 182/9 in 20 overs (SanjuSamson 20, Nitish Rana 81, Riyan Parag 37, Shimron Hetmyer 19; Khaleel Ahmed 2-38, Ravichandran Ahwin 1-46, Noor Ahmed 2-28, Matheesha Pathirana 2-28, Ravindra Jadeja 1-10) beat Chennai Super Kings 176/6 in 20 overs (Rahul Tripathy 23, Ruturaj Gaikwad 63, Shivam Dube 18, Ravindra Jadeja 32*, MS Dhoni 16, Jamie Overton 11*; Wanindu Hasaranga 4-35, Jofra Archer 1-13, Sndeep Sharna 1-42) by 6 runs
What next?
Both teams have a five day-gap before their next encounter on April 05 when CSK host the Delhi Capitals while Rajasthan Royals go to Mullanpur to take on the Punjab Kings on the same day.
A marathon innings by Sandun Suwaris paved the way for Moratu Vidyalaya to force a draw to the 73rd Battle of the Golds Big Match against Sri Sumangala College Panadura at De Soysa Stadium Moratuwa on Sunday.
Batting for the second time, Moratu Vidyalaya had barely closed the first innings deficit when Suwaris came to bat. They had just six wickets in hand with more than two sessions remaining on the final day when Suwaris rose to the occasion with a fine rearguard action.
The middle order batsman held their batting together with a marathon innings. He faced 258 balls for his unbeaten half century which included just a solitary boundary.
Moratu Vidyalaya fared badly in the first innings as they were bowled out for 87 runs with Mevindu Kumarasiri taking five wickets for 28 runs.
In their essay Sri Sumangala too struggled for runs but a half century by Rusith Jayawardana helped them reach 144 runs.
Earlier Sanjana Senavirathna played a crucial role top scoring with 66 runs. His knock included four fours and two sixes.The Battle of the Golds big match was played as a three day encounter for the first time this year.
Ramadan is a time to share the profound message of generosity, and compassion with the World – PM
First phase of the Urban Forest Project under the ‘Clean Sri Lanka’ programme launched
May this Eid-ul-Fitr bring peace, reconciliation and the fulfillment of our shared hopes for a new era of renewal and prosperity – President
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