U.S. loses to West Indies at T20 World Cup

The United States suffered a heavy loss to the West Indies in its second game of the Super Eight phase of the T20 Cricket World Cup.

The U.S. posted just 128 runs after failing to see out their 20 overs after being put into bat first at the coin toss with opener Andries Gous top scoring with 29.

That proved far too easy a target for West Indies, who coasted home with 55 balls to spare and losing just a single wicket. Shai Hope top scored with a brutal 82 runs from just 39 balls — including eight sixes — at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.

U.S. captain Aaron Jones was left disappointed with an “under par” total with the bat.

“I think maybe, we probably needed a score around 175-180 and we obviously finished under par,” he said. “In the middle we lost wickets in clusters. That’s very important in T20 cricket and we never recovered from that.

“Obviously we tried to take a few quick wickets in the powerplay. England will be a good challenge and we are up for it.”

The U.S. has been a revelation in its first global competition, a tournament it is co-hosting alongside the West Indies.

The U.S. qualified for this second phase after victories over Canada and Pakistan in the group stage coupled with a rain-enforced washout against Ireland.

It opened the Super Eight phase with a narrow defeat to South Africa on Wednesday, who went on to beat defending champions England on Friday.

Can the U.S still reach semifinals?

It will be a long shot but the U.S. can still make it through.

The U.S. faces England, who won this tournament the last time it was staged in Australia in 2022, again in Bridgetown, on Sunday.

It must now beat Jos Buttler’s team and do so by a healthy margin to stand any chance of qualifying for the final four while also needing South Africa to beat West Indies later on Sunday.

The top two in each group progress to the semifinals before the tournament’s final, back in Bridgetown, on June 29.

The U.S. sits bottom of Super Eights Group 2 after two games and must overturn the net run-rate disadvantage — cricket’s equivalent of soccer’s goal difference — to those above in their final match to give themselves a shot of progressing.

For the West Indies, the emphatic nature of the victory against the U.S. means a win over South Africa in their final Super Eights game will take them into the semifinals.

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(Randy Brooks/AFP via Getty Images)