Last Updated on 2 months ago by Charbel Coorey
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is just three days old, but we have already seen the lesser-known cricketing nations punch above their weight and give the big boys a run for their money.
The opening day saw the Netherlands almost pull off a stunning victory over Pakistan in Colombo, while the evening game saw the United States of America have co-hosts and defending champions India in a heap of trouble. That India was able to get past 160 was purely because of their skipper Suryakumar Yadav’s magnificent knock of 84. India finished with 9-161 in 20 overs, a long, long way away from the 300 alert that broadcaster Star Sports had sounded off ahead of the match.
In fact, the broadcaster predicted the same for West Indies vs. Scotland and England vs. Nepal, but as it turned out, neither the Windies nor the English could get anywhere near that figure. The West Indies scored 5-182, while England managed 7-184, which Nepal came excruciatingly close (6-180) to breaching.
England captain Harry Brook acknowledged Nepal’s stupendous effort in the post-match presentation.
“It wasn’t easy at all, but thankfully, we got over the line. They played extremely well, and I just heard you say that not many teams take out Adil Rashid down the way they did. And I thought that they played against him outstandingly. And they put us in a tricky situation for quite a few occasions there as well,” Brook said as quoted by Cricbuzz.
“I thought we were in a very good position to be able to defend that (on the thought during the break). And I didn’t quite think it was going to go as close as that, but hats off to the Nepalese team. They played extremely well, and I wish them all the best for the rest of the competition.”
Fans call out Star Sports for 300 alert “gimmick”
The first side to cross the 200-run mark in this World Cup was Scotland, who racked up 4-207 against Italy at the Eden Gardens on Monday morning. South Africa scored 213/4 against Canada at Ahmedabad in the evening.
Naturally, fans on X (formerly Twitter) have been calling out Star Sports for seemingly writing off the Associates. Below are some of the reactions:
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