Photo credit: Peter Della Penna

Deunte Darrell runs off in celebration after his third six floored USA in a four-wicket win for Bermuda that sent them to the 2019 T20 World Cup Qualifier in the UAE. 

By Peter Della Penna in Bermuda (Twitter @PeterDellaPenna)
 
Six years after Christopher Douglas ambushed USA’s plans to go to the 2014 World Cup Qualifier in New Zealand with 89 off 75 balls on the last day of WCL Division Three in Bermuda, Deunte Darrell joined him in Bermudian cricket lore with an unbeaten 30 off 23 balls, firing three sixes including the game-clincher over long-on in the 19^th over in a four-wicket win over USA at White Hill Field on Thursday that secured their place in the T20 World Cup Qualifier for the first time since 2013. The result also ended USA’s 2020 T20 World Cup dreams despite having already booked a three-week tour to India in late September in anticipation of advancing to the UAE for October’s qualifier.
 
USA had entered the week having never lost to Bermuda in T20 cricket since the teams played their first encounter against each other on the island in 2010 at the semi-finals of the ICC Americas Division One Championship. But USA’s nine-year, seven-match T20 winning streak was ended on day one of the tournament and Bermuda showed it was no fluke by dumping USA again four days later at the same venue.
 

Chasing another well-below par target of 142 set by USA, who had been sent in by Bermuda at the start of the day, Okera Bascome got Bermuda’s chase off to a fiery start with a four and six as part of a 12-run opening over taken off USA captain Saurabh Netravalkar. The assault from Bascome continued in the third as Timroy Allen was pulled and then driven for another pair of sixes in his lone over that went for 17 runs. Bascome’s third six came off Netravalkar back into the attack in the fifth over to put a charge into the crowd of more than 600 at White Hill Field.
 
It took the intervention of 21-year-old left-arm spinner Karima Gore to stop the bleeding. Having given up just three runs off his first two overs in the Powerplay tying down Bermuda captain Terryn Fray, he finally got a chance to bowl his first delivery to Bascome. It wound up being the only one Bascome would see from Gore, beaten by a quicker ball and bowled for 35. Five balls late, Fray spliced an attempted drive to Hayden Walsh Jr. at point for Gore’s second wicket of the over to make it 45 for 2.
 
USA’s bowlers continued to do their best to restrict Bermuda early in overs before letting the pressure off on the final ball. Malachi Jones heaved Steven Taylor’s offspin for six over long-on off the final ball of the 7^th in an eight-run over. Timil Patel induced a false slog from Delray Rawlins to Gore at deep midwicket for 12 in the 10^th over to make it 69 for 3, but the ball final ball of the over resumed in the 11^th when Jones once again slogged Taylor for six to make it 86 for 3, leaving just 56 to get off the final nine overs.
 
Timil finally removed Jones for a rapid 27 off 19 as Jones’ attempted charge went awry and resulted in a stumping in the 12^th, but Walsh Jr. released more pressure in the 12^th with a six to the newly arrived Darrell before another last-ball four to Kamau Leverock. The Nottinghamshire 2nds allrounder creamed Timil for six in the following over to bring the equation under a run a ball at 109 for 4 after 14 before he was bowled by Walsh Jr. after a missed heave in the 15^th for 16.
 
Gore then gave USA faint hope by bowling a spectacular wicket-maiden in the 17^th to Allan Douglas, who ended the over edging behind a wild heave to give Gore incredible figures of 4-2-5-3 on the day. Suddenly the crowd had gone quiet with Bermuda needing 25 off 18 balls and just four wickets in hand.
 
Netravalkar brought himself back on in the 18^th and after conceding just three runs off the first four balls the USA captain bowled a costly no ball, his second no ball of the day in a near carbon copy scenario of USA’s day one loss when Jessy Singh bowled four no balls on the day in USA’s narrow defeat. The free hit was carved behind point by Onais Bascome for four to compound the error, and another single was taken to end a 10-run over and Bermuda needed just 15 off the final two overs.
 
USA gambled with Walsh Jr. for the 19^th, hoping Darrell and Onais would attack the legspinner and create an opportunity for a wicket. The attack came from Darrell, but a wicket did not. Darrell slammed the second ball for six, before another straight drive over long-on on the fifth ball of the over ended the match as the Bermuda squad poured onto the pitch to mob Darrell’s victory sprint.
 

USA’s batting order failed to fire despite the inclusion of Sunny Sohal in place of Jaskaran Malhotra at the start of the day, forcing Monank Patel to take over behind the stumps. USA were rattled in the Powerplay by Malachi Jones and George O’Brien as the visitors ended their first six overs struggling at 39 for 3.
 
Despite a solid first over in which Xavier Marshall hit O’Brien for two boundaries, Monank fell in the second to Jones, caught on the ring at midwicket flicking loosely to Rawlins for 6. Marshall then fell driving O’Brien to one of the only two men outside the ring in the Powerplay, Leverock at long-on, to go for 17 in the third over. Sohal struggled to time the ball after arriving at No. 4, eventually falling for 5 off 11 balls leg before to Jones, beaten for pace going back to flick across the line. After surviving a huge lbw shout to Rawlins on the fifth ball of the 7^th over, Aaron Jones fell next ball, bowled by Rawlins going back to a quicker ball to make it 43 for 4.
 
It was left to Walsh Jr. and Taylor to dig USA out of trouble and the pair added 42 together but struggled to find the boundary. Both men scored at less than a run a ball as the run rate continued to stagnate before Taylor’s attempt to up the ante failed when he drove Onais Bascome to Douglas at long-on to make it 85 for 5. Allen arrived and after five wides down leg, he got off the mark with a single followed by a six that barely cleared Darrell at cow corner. Trying to repeat the shot next ball, he miscued a heave and skied a catch to Darrell to make it 98 for 6.
 
Walsh Jr. was bowled by Rawlins missing a drive for USA’s top score of 28 in the 16^th. Gannon then flicked Onais to Rawlins at deep midwicket for his third scalp of the day, ending with 3 for 32 to leave USA in danger of not batting out their overs at 111 for 8 in 17.
 
Netravalkar, Timil and Gore did their best to give USA hope, adding 30 runs off the last three overs. Netravalkar struck a six straight down the ground off O’Brien in the 19^th before skying a catch to cover, but Timil struck a boundary off a waist high no ball to start the 20^th as part of a 14-run over to close the innings. In the end, it was still not nearly enough. Aside from the spell by Onais, Rawlins finished with another strong day in the field taking figures of 2 for 22 in his four overs while Malachi Jones and O’Brien ended with 2 for 26 and 2 for 38 respectively.
 
In the first match of the day, Canada rolled past Cayman Islands by eight wickets. Chasing a target of 92, Canada actually lost both openers without a run on the board. But Nitish Kumar and Navneet Dhaliwal sealed the match with a nerveless 95-run unbroken stand. Dhaliwal ended the match striking a boundary to bring up a half-century, securing his second straight Man of the Match award. Bermuda’s win over USA combined with Canada’s win over Cayman Islands meant that Canada also secured their place in the T20 World Cup Qualifier in the UAE.
 
All teams have an off day on Friday before play resumes on Saturday. USA takes on Cayman Islands in the morning at 11 a.m. at White Hill Field while Bermuda and Canada play at 3:30 p.m.