Aaron Jones Stars as Canada and USA Battle in Thrilling Encounter

Canada and the USA faced off in their first match of the ICC T20 World Cup. This was also the opening match of the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup. The two debutant teams delivered a thrilling game, with the host USA emerging victorious. Aaron Jones was the star of the match, raining sixes in Dallas.

At the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, the USA won the toss and opted to bowl first. Canada posted a formidable total of 194 runs for 5 wickets in 20 overs. The USA chased down the target with 14 balls and 7 wickets in hand.

Canada's opener Navneet Dhaliwal and middle-order batsman Nicholas Kirton both scored fifties. Dhaliwal scored 61 runs off 44 balls with 6 fours and 3 sixes. Nicholas contributed 51 runs off 31 balls, hitting 3 fours and 2 sixes.

Towards the end, Shreyas Movva added an unbeaten 32 runs off 16 balls, bringing Canada's total close to 200. For the USA, Ali Khan, Harmeet Singh, and Corey Anderson each took a wicket.

In response, the USA lost opener Steven Taylor on the second ball of the innings. The other opener, Monank Patel, could only manage 16 runs off 16 balls.

The USA scored 41 runs in the powerplay and reached 50 runs by the 9th over. However, it was Andries Gous and Aaron Jones who turned the tide, forming a record 131-run partnership for the third wicket. This is now the highest partnership for the USA in international T20s.

Gous scored 65 runs off 46 balls with 7 fours and 3 sixes before getting out. Jones, however, remained unbeaten, leading his team to victory. He scored 94 runs off 40 balls, hitting 4 fours and a record 10 sixes. Jones now holds the record for the most sixes in an innings for the USA.

The USA scored 197 runs for 3 wickets in 17.4 overs, making their first T20 World Cup match a memorable victory. Newcomers Canada also made a statement with their high score.