Mumbai (Maharshtra) [India], February 8 : USA captain Monank Patel expressed pride in his team's performance despite their 29-run loss to India, highlighting key positives and lessons for the upcoming group-stage games at the T20 World Cup.
During the post-match presentation, Patel praised his bowlers for assessing the conditions well and giving the team a good start.
"I thought our bowlers did a great job. The way they assessed the conditions and the pitch gave us a good momentum and a good start. Here and there, we dropped a few catches that cost us the game. I thought 160 was a good score. We will take this score any day on this pitch," he said as quoted by Cricbuzz.
Reflecting on the batting performance, Patel noted the top-order struggled to find intent. The USA captain remained optimistic about the team's future in the tournament.
"The top three couldn't perform, and I thought the intent was missing. But a lot of learning and a lot of positives from this game," he added.
"The way we handled the pressure, playing in front of a big crowd and against India, lots of positives. It's going to help us in the next three games. We will come back stronger," he said.
After being asked to bat first, the Men in Blue made 161/9 in 20 overs. Captain Suryakumar Yadav played a fantastic unbeaten knock of 84 off 49 deliveries, with 10 fours and four towering sixes.
Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan (20 off 16 balls, with one four and two sixes) and Tilak Varma (25 off 16 balls, with three fours and one six) also chipped in with the bat.
For the USA, Shadley van Schalkwyk (4/29) and Harmeet Singh (2/26) were among the wicket-takers.
In response, the USA were restricted to 132/8 as they lost the match by 29 runs. Milind Kumar (34 off 34 balls, with four boundaries), Sanjay Krishnamurthi (37 off 31 balls, with two sixes and one four) and Shubham Ranjane (37 off 22 balls, with two fours and three sixes) played fighting knocks for their side.
For India, Mohammed Siraj (3/29), Axar Patel (2/24), and Arshdeep Singh (2/18) picked wickets.