Indian bowlers produced a disciplined effort after a middling batting display to subdue the United States of America by 29 runs, starting their ICC T20 World Cup campaign on a winning note here on Saturday.
Pacers Mohammad Siraj (2/29) Arshdeep Singh (2/18) and left-arm spinner Axar Patel (2/24) were the pick of the bowlers, after India labored to 161 for 9.
In reply, the USA were restricted to 132/8.
Milind Kumar (34), Shubham Ranjane (37) and Suraj Krishnamurthi (37) fought well but were no match to the big-match experience of Indian bowlers.
However, it is a matter to be noted that the US team comprises of a number of Indian players, with PayTM founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma calling the match, “It should be called India vs NRI India.”
Here are the Indian-origin players in the US cricket team:
1. Monank Patel: The skipper of the US team is himself of Indian origin. He has played 71 ODI and 43 T20I matches so far.
2. Jasdeep Singh: The US vice-captain Jasdeep Singh is also of Indian origin. “We are in this World Cup to make a mark and put US cricket on the World Map. India is just another opponent for us and we’ll do things to the best of our capacity, plan well and we go into the game thinking it as just another game and see how things go,” he had told PTI ahead of the tournament.
3. Saiteja Reddy MukkamallaOpening bater Saiteja Reddy Mukkamalla is also of Indian origin. He was born in Plainsboro, New Jersey. He also plays for the Texas Super Kings, CSK’s US counterpart.
4. Milind Kumar: Experienced right-hand batsman Milind Kumar is also of Indian origin. He started his cricketing career in India, earlier playing for Delhi and Sikkim. He also had a stint with the Delhi Daredevils.
5. Sanjay Prasad Krishnamurthy: Allrounder Sanjay Prasad Krishnamurthi is of Indian origin, having played for the Karnataka U-16s in the early stages of his career.
6. Shubham Subhash Ranjane: Born in Pune, Ranjane now plays as an allrounder for the US team. He played for Maharashtra before moving to the US. He has also had a stint with the Rajasthan Royals.
7. Harmeet Singh Baddhan: Born in Mumbai, this bowling all-rounder had also played for India B and the India U-19 sides in the course of his career. His career includes stints with Tripura, the West Zone, and Rajasthan Royals.
