New York
The USA cricket team has dropped Aaron James from its ODI squad for the upcoming World Cup League 2 (WCL-2) tri-series, starting today. This decision follows Jones’s choice to play for the CPL franchise St. Lucia Kings, which caused him to miss the recent tour to Namibia in September.
The selection panel announced an unchanged squad that previously toured Namibia, indicating confidence in the team’s current composition. Jones’s participation in the CPL, despite warnings from USA Cricket, reportedly created tensions within the selection committee and the governing body. As a local player in the tournament, he did not require a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from USA Cricket.
Andries Gous, who shortened his stint with the Trinbago Knight Riders to join the Namibia tour, has retained his place in the squad. The USA team maintained an unbeaten run in four ODIs during that tour, reinforcing the selectors’ decision to drop Jones. Although he was recalled for the T20I series following impressive performances in the CPL final, his position in the T20I squad is now also at risk due to recent low scores in the Nepal T20I series.
On a brighter note, young talent Sanjay Krishnamurthy shone brightly, and scoring 167 for USA-A against Scotland amid challenging conditions. The USA will kick off the tri-series against Nepal from today.
BOX
Squad
Monank Patel (captain), Smit Patel, Sai Teja Mukkamalla, Milind Kumar, Shayan Jahangir, Andries Gous, Harmeet Singh, Nosthush Kenjige, Saurabh Netravalkar, Juanoy Drysdale, Utkarsh Srivastava, Jasdeep Singh, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Yasir Mohammad, and Sushant Modani.
