22-year-old Ali Sheikh only needed three overs of left-arm spin to peel off a five-wicket haul in just his fourth T20I in the USA Men's senior side on a day when all ten Bermuda wickets fell to spin in a 10-wicket win for the Americans. 

File photo credit: Peter Della Penna

By Peter Della Penna (Twitter/X @PeterDellaPenna)
 
After waiting patiently for several years to make a debut at senior international level with a logjam of left-arm spinners ahead of him, Ali Sheikh has wasted little time showing why he was such an enticing prospect by taking a five-wicket haul in just his fourth T20I for USA to set up a 10-wicket win over Bermuda on day three of the 2025 North American Cup at Jimmy Powell Oval in Grand Cayman. 
 
The 22-year-old Sheikh claimed 5 for 15 off just three overs as Bermuda wilted quickly against USA’s entire spin arsenal. After choosing to bat first at the toss, Bermuda were bowled out for 70 in 16.3 overs as legspinner Yasir Mohammad backed up Sheikh by taking 4 for 11 in 3.3 overs. USA’s chase was concluded before the end of the Powerplay as Sai Mukkamalla clattered a 23-ball half-century to reach the target in just 5.4 overs. 
 
Not a single Bermuda player scored at a strike rate above 86 as they struggled to adapt to a pitch which favored slow bowlers. The struggle was clear from the start as opener Terryn Fray grafted his way to 5 off 15 balls before being the first wicket to fall in the fifth over, telegraphing a charge down the pitch to Milind Kumar only for Milind to dart a length delivery wider outside off stump which Fray never got close to hitting and resulted in a simple stumping by Shayan Jahangir to make it 18 for 1. 
 
Sheikh was brought on as USA’s fifth bowler in the eighth over, but made his mark on the match off his fourth delivery with a sensational return catch to dismiss Jarryd Richardson for 10. The sequence started with Sheikh delivering a fullish length ball with his left-arm spin that was chipped loosely toward mid-on. Seeing a catching opportunity, Sheikh instinctively maneuvered around the non-striker Alex Dore before leaping and knifing the ball out of the air with his right hand before completing a somersault landing while protecting the ball from making any contact with the ground in order to complete a legal catch. 
 
By comparison, the next four wickets in Sheikh’s haul were underwhelming but still underscored his relentless accuracy in attacking the stumps to create wicket-taking opportunities. Dore fell for 16 at the start of the 10^thover after going to pull a length ball that skidding on and resulted in an inside edge off the pads into off stump to make it 45 for 3. Dominic Sabir ended the over trying to slog a fullish length ball only for a thick edge to flutter toward backward point where Sanjay Krishnamurthi charged in to take a waist high catch in stride as Bermuda were 49 for 4 after 10 overs. 
 
Yasir Mohammad switched ends to replace Sheikh in the attack for the 12^th over and the result was a triple-wicket maiden to leave Bermuda reeling at 53 for 7. Mohammad took two straightforward return catches in the sequence as Bermuda’s lineup was flummoxed by the amount of grip and turn he generated. Allan Douglas Jr sent a gentle catch back to Mohammad at chest height off the first ball of the over for 3 before a first-ball slog by Derrick Brangman floated off a thick edge to Saurabh Netravalkar at backward point. After Sinclair Smith went onto the back foot to defend the hat-trick ball, he checked a drive to a subsequent length delivery and produced a waist-high return catch back to Mohammad to make it three in four balls. 
 
Sheikh was brought back into the attack in the 16^th over for his third over of the day and by the end of the frame he had completed his five-wicket haul. Former captain Delray Rawlins went for a top-score of 18 in identical fashion to Dore, trying to pull a length ball that skidded low and resulted in a bottom edge onto the stumps for 18 to make it 68 for 8. Sheikh completed his five-for off the last ball of the over when Zeko Burgess tried slogging a length ball that went straight up and was eventually taken by Jessy Singh running in from mid-on, who bobbled the initial attempt before completing the catch while sliding on his knees to make it 68 for 9. 
 
Mohammad wrapped up the innings three balls later when Jermal Proctor pulled a length ball flat to Krishnamurthi at mid-on for 5. Akhilesh Bodugum was the only spinner to not take a wicket, ending with 0 for 14 in four overs. The pace duo of Singh and Netravalkar also went wicketless, returning figures of 0 for 12 and 0 for 7 respectively off two overs each. Milind ended with figures of 1 for 10 off two overs after bowling offspin with the new ball.
 
Mukkamalla’s aggression ensured the second innings was done and dusted in less than 30 minutes. He cut the first ball of the chase through backward point for four off Delray Rawlins’ left-arm spin, then drove over extra cover for two more boundaries before another cut for four in a 16-run first over. His first six came in the third over against Proctor’s medium pace as a patented front-foot pull to a length ball disappeared over the midwicket rope. 
 
Jahangir, who was on 3 after three overs while Mukkamalla had raced to 29, finally started to catch up in the fourth over against Zeko Burgess. A slashed edge wide of the keeper off the third ball of the over produced his first boundary before a much crisper drive through cover off the next ball resulted in four more. Jahangir stepped down the track and slapped a length ball past Burgess through mid-on for another boundary to end the over as USA reached 48 for 0 in four overs. 
 
After watching at the non-striker’s end for the entirety of the previous over, Mukkamalla reasserted his dominance off the first ball of the fifth, heaving Proctor for six again with another front foot pull over midwicket to start a 12-run over. Jahangir took a single to start the sixth over as Mukkamalla was back on strike on 40 with 10 runs needed to win. He swept Sabir’s offspin behind square for a boundary to move to 44, then drove the next ball over mid-off for another four to go to 48. A pull through midwicket off the next ball resulted in two runs to clinch victory and raise his half-century at once. Jahangir finished up with a modest 16 off 11 balls at the opposite end. 
 
All teams have a rest day on Tuesday while USA actually will have two rest days before their showdown against Canada on Thursday because USA’s bye in the five-team tournament comes on Wednesday when all other teams are in action. Like USA, Canada is also undefeated after they too scored a 10-wicket win on Monday against Bahamas by bowling them out for 41 before taking just four overs to chase down the target. If Canada can beat Cayman Islands on Wednesday, it would mean that the winner of the USA v Canada match on Thursday will end the group stage at the top of the table heading into the tournament semi-finals on Saturday.