yesOn Friday morning in New York, you couldn’t buy a USA cricket jersey for any amount of money, indisputable proof that the sport has taken the country by storm. Kids in Williamsburg are wearing cable-knit sweaters. Work has already begun on a Broadway show about the life of Saurabh Netravalkar, the computer engineer who bowled the decisive over in the US’s win against Pakistan. There are also rumors that Joe Biden’s media team is briefing him on the intricacies of drop-in pitches in case the topic comes up in the first presidential debate.
At least, The New York Times ran a story about the match under the headline “USA Scores Historic Cricket Victory, But Only Pakistan Noticed.” The match made Google’s list of the top 20 search trends in the United States that day, ranking 18th, eight places below National Donut Day and two above Oklahoma softball.
Meanwhile, at Eisenhower Park, cricket’s Off-Broadway World Cup continued. Canada beat Ireland by 12 runs in another entertaining match against a full member of the International Cricket Council. Sadly, only 5,000 people came to watch the match. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 10 percent of New York state’s population is of Irish descent, and judging by the chatter of the police officers on duty at the ground, nearly everyone is of Irish descent. In a city that hosts the world’s largest St. Patrick’s Day parade, you’d think the International Cricket Council could have sold a few more tickets.
The good news, though, is that 24 hours of emergency treatment seems to have improved the condition of the pitch. The match was played on the same ground used for India’s win over Ireland on Wednesday, but the grass had been mowed and thoroughly groomed with a heavy roller. There was still some inconsistency in the bounce, but batting was certainly easier than in either of the previous two matches at this venue. After 15 overs of the first innings, Canada made a bit of history by becoming the first team to score more than 100 runs in an official match at this venue.
The biggest contributor was the diminutive batsman, Nicholas Kirton. Born and raised in Barbados but with a Canadian mother, Kirton has deft hands, a clean drive and a fine pull. He scored 49 off 35 balls and partnered Shreyas Mova for 75, including 17 in an over from Craig Young, more runs than any other Irish top six had managed together. They struggled against the Canadian spinners. George Dockrell and Mark Adair nearly won the match with a partnership of 62, but Canada’s stalwart fast bowler, Jeremy Gordon, kept them at 17 in the final over to close it out.
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Ireland’s game was looking pretty hopeless – their World Cup is now all but over and completely disappointing – but the end of the game may be a joyous one, given that the New York Irish are known for holding wakes.