Windhoek, Apr 5 (IANS): The United States became the first team to punch their ticket to the Cricket World Cup 2023 Qualifier with a thrilling win over Jersey while Namibia managed to stay alive to fight another day with a comfortable win over Canada.
Put in to bat first with a top-two spot up for grabs, the USA were restricted to just 231 in their quota of 50 overs.
Jersey kept picking wickets at regular intervals but opener Steven Taylor held one end strong. He stitched crucial partnerships with Saiteja Mukkamalla (54-run stand) and Gajanand Singh (69 runs) to bail the USA out of trouble, the ICC informed on Tuesday.
Nisarg Patel and Jessy Singh made vital contributions lower down the order to push the USA to a substantial total. Benjamin Ward was the pick of the bowlers, breaking the back of the USA batting lineup by scalping four wickets.
In reply, Jersey's chase never took off as Ali Khan ran through the top and middle-order with a five-wicket haul inside the first six overs. Asa Tribe and Jonty Jenner went on the defensive to curb USA's ascendency but were already playing catch-up having lost half their side with just 17 runs on board.
Once Jenner was dismissed, Tribe put together a brilliant Benjamin Ward 97-run stand that gave Jersey hopes of mounting an unlikely comeback before the duo fell within a span of four overs as the USA wrested control.
At 168/8, Jersey were down and out but there was yet another twist in the tale - Julius Sumerauer and Charles Perchard took the attack to the USA and gave their side a glimmer of hope. However, those hopes were dashed as Ali Khan returned and picked up two wickets to finish with figures of 7/32.
The win, along with Namibia's victory over Canada, ensured that the USA finish in the top two and as a result, sealed the berth in the 2023 Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
Choosing to bat first in a must-win game to keep their Qualifier hopes alive, Shaun Fouché and Nikolaas Davin got Namibia off to a solid start with a 63-run stand. Unfortunately, they failed to take advantage of the foundation laid as they kept losing wickets regularly.
Fouché's 83 added much-needed stability to the innings as he kept the scorecard ticking with the middle order. Once he fell, Zane Green and Pikky Ya France added 62 runs for the 7th wicket as Namibia posted a strong total of 267/9.
n response, Canada made a bright start to their chase but were pegged back by the early wicket of Aaron Johnson. Matthew Spoors and Pargat Singh steadied the ship but the wicket of the opener triggered a mini-collapse, which Canada never managed to recover from.
Canada, who were 64/1 at one point, were soon reduced to 96/6, with spinners Pikky Ya France and Bernard Scholtz running riot picking up two wickets each. Ravinderpal Singh's 34 batting at No.8 only delayed the inevitable as Canada were bowled out for 156, 111 runs shy of the target.