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Monank Patel-led United States pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of cricket after beating Pakistan in the super over during match 11 of the ongoing edition of the T20 World Cup 2024 which was being played at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, on June 6 (Thursday). Saurabh Netravalkar bowled a heroic spell and ensured that his team could celebrate a historic victory, the win was also special for the Indian-origin player as he was able to take a 14-year-old revenge against Babar Azam and Pakistan for the loss in U19 World Cup 2010.
Saurabh Netravalkar's revenge against Babar Azam
USA's premium pacer Saurabh Netravalkar was part of Team India's U19 World Cup squad back in 2010. That squad also included the likes of KL Rahul, Harshal Patel, Mayank Agarwal, Sandeep Sharma, and Jaydev Unadkat. During their match against the Pakistan team who also had players like Babar Azam and Ahmed Shehzad, the Men in Blue suffered a defeat. Netravalkar also picked up the wicket of Ahmed Shehzad in that match but it was not enough to ensure his team's win.
Years later, Saurabh Netravalkar shifted to the USA and got the opportunity to square up against Babar Azam's team once again and he did not miss the opportunity. He picked up two big wickets in his four-over spell and only gave away 18 runs. He then also bowled the match-winning super over spell and handed the co-hosts of the mega tournament the biggest win in their history. Harmeet Singh is also another player who was part of the India's U19 World Cup squad in 2010, he was also part of this historic win against Pakistan for USA.
Monank Patel on win against Pakistan
The USA captain was extremely happy with his team's performance and hailed them. He gave everyone the credit for this win and called it a result of team effort. Monank also received the Player of the Match award for his crucial half-century.
“It is a big achievement, beating Pakistan and that too playing (them) for the first time. It was a complete team effort. We won the toss and we made sure we utilised the conditions well, we did really well to keep them under 160. I am happy with my contribution and more happy that we won the game. We spoke about the top three contributing and happy that myself and Gous could do that. The plan was to play proper shots and he (Gous) took the pressure off me. Happy to get the two points. As a batter and player you want to show off in the big games and I am happy that my knock came in a winning cause,” Monank Patel said in the post-match presentation.
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