Co-hosts USA face T20 World Cup litmus test against India

Normally, an India v USA contest would not elicit a lot of interest but given what has happened so far at the T20 World Cup, Wednesday's match between the two sides has become a must-watch.

The co-hosts and India are unbeaten so far in the tournament, with two wins out of two.

One of the wins for USA was by Super Over against Pakistan in Dallas. That result sent the tournament in a whole new direction as 2022 finalists Pakistan now face the possibility of an exit in the first round.

On Wednesday, if the hosts manage to tame India the way they did Pakistan – which they seem more than equipped to do – then it will prove beyond doubt that the USA are a serious threat in T20 cricket, and that Associate nations deserve a seat at the table at World Cups.

That would be a remarkable achievement because the USA are a group of mostly part-time cricketers. For them to even be in a position to consistently challenge established sides with vast resources at their disposal shows how far the game has come and what a great leveller the T20 format can be.

It will be an emotional outing for local fast bowler Saurabh Netravalkar. The left-arm seamer, who was the hero for USA against Pakistan as he kept his cool in the Super Over to script one of the biggest upsets in T20 cricket was a first-class cricketer in Mumbai and even represented India at the 2010 U19 World Cup, where he featured alongside KL Rahul.

But with limited opportunities at senior level, he decided to pursue his studies in computer engineering, moved to the US and is now working at Oracle, playing cricket in between his busy schedule.

There are other players of Indian descent in the USA team, and they will be highly motivated to give it their all against their country of