USA Vs CAN, T20 World Cup 2024: ‘Both Teams Will Be Under Pressure’, Says Aaron Jones Ahead Of Tournament Opener

Aaron Jones, the USA vice-captain, acknowledged the pressure and outstanding rivalry with Canada ahead of their T20 World Cup 2024 opener, stating that whichever team handles the pressure better will emerge victorious in the clash between the archrivals.

Dubai: Ahead of the inaugural match of the T20 World Cup 2024, USA vice-captain Aaron Jones said there will be pressure on both Canada and his side before the start of the ICC event.

USA will take on Canada in the first match of the T20 World Cup 2024 at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on Sunday.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Jones said there’s ‘outstanding rivalry’ between USA and Canada. He added that whichever team handles the pressure will win the match.

“It’s a World Cup game, the first World Cup game. There’s going to be pressure on both teams. And obviously we know the outstanding rivalry we have with Canada, so pressure will be on both teams. It’s whoever handles the pressure best tomorrow [that will come out on top] to be honest,” Jones was quoted by ESPNcricinfo as saying.

He further added that they enjoy playing against Canada. The US vice- captain also accepted that it would be challenging for them in the inaugural match of the marquee event.

“As it relates to the players, we all are friends, we’ve all played together, against one another, for years. So everybody’s good and cool, but as it relates to the fans, it’s a bit of a rivalry, we all know that. We enjoy playing against Canada, they enjoy playing against us. We know for sure it’s going to be challenging and we’re looking forward to the challenge,” he added.

The USA are placed in Group A of the T20 World Cup along with Canada, India, Ireland, and Pakistan. They will begin their voyage against their archrivals Canada and will take on Pakistan, India, and Ireland in their next three group-stage fixtures.

USA T20 World Cup 2024 Squad: Monank Patel (C), Aaron Jones (VC), Andries Gous, Corey Anderson, Ali Khan, Harmeet Singh, Jessy Singh, Milind Kumar, Nisarg Patel, Nitish Kumar, Noshtush Kenjige, Saurabh Nethralvakar, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Steven Taylor, Shayan Jahangir. Reserve Players: Gajanand Singh, Juanoy Drysdale and Yasir Mohammad.