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United States of America (USA) batter Aaron Jones delivered a fantastic performance in the team's 2024 T20 World Cup opener against Canada at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on Saturday, June 1. He remained unbeaten on 94 off just 40 balls.
Jone struck 10 sixes and four boundaries during his stay at the crease. His explosive knock helped the USA chase the 195-run target down in 17.4 overs to secure a seven-wicket victory.
Several of Jones' tweets went viral on social media following the game. One of those tweets was about former India skipper MS Dhoni. In December 2012, the 29-year-old posted about Dhoni not having a half-century to his name in T20Is.
"I never knew that dhoni doesn't have a T20 50..." Aaron Jones' tweet read.
It is worth mentioning that MS Dhoni's maiden T20I half-century came against England in February 2017 in Bengaluru. The swashbuckling batter scored 56 runs off 36 balls. Dhoni's second and final fifty of his T20I career was at Centurion against South Africa, where he remained unbeaten on 52 off 28 balls.
"When my team is under pressure, it gets the best out of me" - Aaron Jones
USA's run chase against Canada started shakily, with opener Steven Taylor back in the hut for a duck in the very first over. They lost another early wicket, as Monank Patel departed in the seventh over after scoring a run-a-ball 16.
Aaron Jones walked out to bat when the USA were reeling at 42/2 in 6.3 overs. He played an exceptional knock under pressure to help his team register a crucial win.
Speaking about his batting exploits, Jones said while collecting the Player of the Match award:
"I don't think it is easy to put it into words. Happy to get my team over the line. I thought anything under 200 is chaseable. We wanted to play aggressive cricket. I think I go through my process while I practice. To be honest, when my team is under pressure it gets the best out of me."
USA, also the co-hosts of the 2024 T20 World Cup, will next take on Pakistan at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on Thursday, June 6.
