New Jersey teenage legspinner Mahek Desai recorded the best ever figures for a USA Women's U19 bowler at an ICC tournament as her 5 for 6 off four overs helped bowl out Canada for just 46 in USA's 10-wicket win. 

Photo credit: ICC/Peter Della Penna

By Peter Della Penna in Grand Cayman (Twitter/X @PeterDellaPenna)
 
New Jersey teenager Mahek Desai became just the second American woman to take a five-wicket haul in an ICC tournament as the leggie’s 5 for 6 helped wipe out Canada for 46 before USA U19 captain Chetna Pagydyala and Sainavi Kambalapalli needed just 7.2 overs to knock off the runs in a ruthless 10-wicket win for USA on day one of the 2026 ICC Americas Women’s T20 World Cup Regional Qualifier at Jimmy Powell Oval in the Cayman Islands. Desai’s figures eclipsed those of Ritu Singh, who took 5 for 15 against New Zealand at the 2025 ICC Women’s U19 T20 World Cup in Malaysia. 
 

Canada won the toss and chose to bat first in the inaugural match in the first edition of the ICC Americas Regional U19 World Cup Qualifier for junior females after USA represented the region in the first two editions of the global event without needing to face anyone on the field. However, Canada showed they still have a long way to go to close the gap with USA as the Americans suffocated the Canada batting lineup from the start of play as Maahi Madhavan began the match with a maiden over. After a pair of wides sent down by Aditi Kumar in the second over accounted for Canada’s first runs, Madhavan struck two balls into the third when she bowled Canada U19 captain Rabbjyot Rajput with a full delivery for an eight-ball duck to make it 2 for 1. 
 
Canada opener Harper Chalmers heaved Kumar’s left-arm pace over mid-on for Canada’s first boundary in the sixth over. But it wound up being Canada’s only boundary off the bat on the day as Kumar struck back with her very next ball, inducing a miscued pull that was taken by Neha Alapati in the ring at midwicket for 7 to make it 16 for 2. 
 
After both openers were dismissed by pace, Pagydyala brought on USA’s spinners and they proved to be a handful for Canada’s middle and lower order to deal with. Saanvi Immadi claimed Vritti Dahiya for 4 in the eighth after a heave across the line resulted in a skied top edge back to the bowler. 
 
Desai entered the attack in the following over as USA went with legspin at both ends and the move paid off immediately. Hasini Santhoshkumar went for a third-ball duck when she chipped a low return catch that was well-held by Desai crouching forward to make it 19 for 4 in the ninth. Desai struck twice more in her third over in the 13^th to make it 28 for 6. First was Khadeeja Fatima for 7 after a top-edged sweep swirled behind the stumps for a simple catch taken by wicketkeeper Pooja Ganesh. Desai was on a hat-trick after she claimed Prakriti Jaiswal first-ball with a spooned catch to Uma Bandaru in the covers. 
 
Desai’s hat-trick ball to Snigdha Malhotra was uneventful and she was taken off for one over in favor of Tia Choudhary. But after Choudhary conceded 10 runs, including a wide down leg side that went to the boundary for five runs, Desai returned for her final over in the 17^th and produced a double-wicket maiden. Her first ball of the over was edged by Malhotra to slip by where Choudhary lunged forward for a sharp catch. Three balls later, Rameen Rashid shuffled across her stumps and missed a heave across the line to be bowled making it 43 for 8. Sanjana Rao survived the final two balls of Desai’s spell to ensure the haul did not grow further. 
 
Immadi came back on in the 18^th and took her second with her first ball of the over, getting Namrit Dhillon to shovel a catch to Pagydyala at mid-off for 6 to make it 43 for 9. A two and a single by Rao off Bandaru in the 19^th put Shreya Vora on strike and the innings ended a few balls later on the last delivery of the over when Vora sliced a skied catch to Kambalapalli at cover for a seven-ball duck. 
 
Aside from Desai’s figures, Immadi claimed 2 for 5 off three overs with a maiden. Offspinner Bandaru took 1 for 8 off three overs. Kumar never came back after the Powerplay and ended with 1 for 8 off two while Madhavan similarly only bowled two overs with the new ball and finished with figures of 1 for 1. USA could have bowled Canada out for an even lower score had they not dropped two chances, one which came off Bandaru’s bowling in the fifth over and the other a return chance put down by Kambalapalli in the 14^th. 
 
Kambalapalli and Pagydyala ensured the chase achieved a swift conclusion, though each survived a chance during their brief time in the middle. Pagydyala powered a drive down the ground for a boundary off the first ball she faced in the second over, but was dropped four balls later on 6 after a pull at backward square leg burst through the hands of the fielder to deny a wicket for Vora’s offspin. Pagydyala rubbed salt into the wound in the following over, pulling Malhotra’s pace twice through the leg side for four. Kamabalapalli got into the act in the fourth, hitting two boundaries to catch up to the captain. She could have been run out for 17 in the sixth over after a mixup with Pagydyala, but a weak and wild throw from square leg allowed Pagydyala to get credit for a single as USA ended the Powerplay at 43 for 0. The pair tapped four singles across the next eight balls to clinch victory. 
 
In the day’s afternoon match, the ICC Next Gen squad downed Argentina by eight wickets, having bowled them out for 42. The combined squad comprised of players from USA, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Bermuda, Cayman Islands and Costa Rica capitalized on early breakthroughs provided by captain Giulia Souza. After Clara Valencia removed Argentina opener Vicki Lehmann, the Brazilian captain struck twice in the third over to leave Argentina struggling at 9 for 3. American allrounder Disha Kaveripakam then burrowed through the middle order with 4 for 7 off four overs to earn Player of the Match honors. Alina Emch chipped in with 2 for 9 before Jashe Trott took the last wicket to end with 1 for 2. North Carolina teen Palak Chauhan opened the chase and finished 21 not out off 24 balls with two fours, including the match-ending boundary, as the Next Gen XI needed just 7.4 overs to claim victory. 
 
The teams return to action on Monday for day two of tournament action at Jimmy Powell Oval. Canada face the Next Gen squad in the morning match scheduled at 10 am before USA take on Argentina in the afternoon at 2:30 pm.