Canadian men win again at ICC Men's T20 World Cup Americas Qualifier
KING CITY – Dilpreet Bajwa scored 55 runs and fellow opener Yuvray Samra added 25 Thursday as Canada defeated the Cayman Islands by 42 runs in a rain-shortened match at the Americas Qualifier for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026.
The weather restricted both teams to five overs, instead of the normal 20.
Canada, the Bahamas, Bermuda and Cayman Islands are competing in an eight-day double round-robin format that will see the group winner advance to next year's ICC Men's T20 World Cup.
Thursday's win improved Canada's record to 4-0-0.
The Caymans won the toss and elected to field at the Maple Leaf Cricket Ground.
Bajwa slammed three fours and four sixes in his 21-ball inning as Canada finished at 81 not out. In response, the Cayman Islands were 39 for five in their five overs.
Opener Jermaine Baker led the Caymans with 15 runs. Shivam Sharma took two wickets for Canada, which faces the Bahamas on Saturday and Bermuda on Sunday.
Canada made its T20 World Cup debut last year, failing to advance out of the group stage after beating No. 11 Ireland and losing to No. 8 Pakistan and co-host U.S., ranked 17th. A match against No. 1 India was abandoned due to inclement weather.
The Cayman Islands and Bahamas were recently promoted from the Subregional Qualifier.
Canada is ranked 19th in T20 play by the International Cricket Council, compared to No. 27 for Bermuda, No. 41 for the Cayman Islands and No. 52 for the Bahamas.
—
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 19, 2025.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
National Observer
36 minutes ago
- National Observer
A new campaign fights for zero waste at FIFA World Cup 2026
With the FIFA World Cup taking place in less than a year, host cities Vancouver and Toronto are working hard to accommodate both the incoming national teams and their fans with new infrastructure. But a conservation group hopes to convince the hosts to consider the tournament's enormous waste footprint, too. Oceana Canada, an independent ocean conservation charity, has announced a campaign to mitigate the waste generated by spectators at the games. Their #ReuseForTheWin campaign calls on MLSE and BCPavco to replace single-use food and beverage containers in Vancouver's BC Place and Toronto's BMO Field ahead of the tournament. According to Oceana Canada, this could avoid the littering of 2.3 million single-use items over the course of the tournament. 'We're asking the question, do you want to have a legacy of trash coming out of the venues? Or do you want to have these stadiums upgraded [so] that you can say we've set the new global sustainability sports standard?' said Anthony Merante, senior plastics campaigner at Oceana Canada. With Toronto's landfill nearing maximum capacity, and questions on how future waste is to be managed, an abundance of single-use items is daunting. Incorporating reusable food and beverage container systems turns off the tap of the overflowing waste-tub, says Merante. 'It puts less things in the landfill. It costs less for waste management, costs [less] for taxpayers, and it costs less directly for the city to clean up a lot of this garbage if we don't make the garbage in the first place,' Merante said. A large proportion of waste that doesn't make it to the landfill and instead enters water systems are 'single-use foodware,' says Chelsea Rochman, associate professor at U of T and director of Rochman Lab. Rochman, who studies plastics that end up in Lake Ontario, found that a quarter of litter in the lake comes from cups, bottles, fast-food packaging, straws and the like. As part of her research, Rochman also works with restaurants to transition take-out orders away from single use and toward reusables. Implementing reusables in an open system where people either bring their own containers or use reusables to be returned, has proven difficult. But with closed-loop systems, like stadiums, implementing reusable foodware systems is more plausible. With the FIFA World Cup taking place in less than a year, host cities Vancouver and Toronto are working hard to accommodate both the incoming national teams and their fans with new infrastructure. But a conservation group hopes to reduce waste. 'With an event, the people are there. They usually throw the material away on site, and they do produce a lot of waste,' Rochman said. 'There is a huge opportunity to make a change, because people will return [their reusable dishes]. They're not leaving with their foodware.' BC Place, one of two Canadian stadiums hosting World Cup matches, introduced reusable cups last year, as part of a pilot program in collaboration with ShareWares. Limited to premier suits and some other segmented areas, the program replaced around 20,000 single-use cups over a six month period. Return rates were only around 70 per cent in the pilot project, so a stadium-wide expansion would require more widespread, highly-visible bins and more education for attendees. But these fixes have produced better return rates at other events like Pride Toronto, said Emily Alfred, waste campaigner for Toronto Environment Alliance. '[Pride Toronto] lost about 30 per cent of their cups in the first year. They made some changes, and they only lost 15 per cent in the second year,' Alfred said. 'And they realized, okay, we need to make it clear that these aren't souvenirs. … They changed how they gave out the cups and how they took them back, and they cut their loss rate in half.' Alfred said with the right policies, World Cup 2026 could be remembered for its zero-waste legacy. Requiring that stadiums and event spaces provide access to water-refill stations and allow people to bring empty bottles will reduce waste from single-use water bottles. And enforcing reusable foodware in spaces where people dine-in, which includes stadiums, would round out the zero-waste project. 'If they can do it at FIFA [WC],' Alfred asked, 'why couldn't we have this in every stadium all the time? Why couldn't we have it in every movie theatre? Every McDonald's could have reusable dishes.'
Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
US advances in CONCACAF Gold Cup but still a work in progress and inconsistent under Pochettino
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The United States is moving to the knockout rounds at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, like it always does. Yet two wins in two matches have been far from consistent and still raise questions about the young squad coach Mauricio Pochettino is guiding into the quarterfinals. The Americans advanced out of Group D with a match still to play with Thursday night's 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia thanks to defender Chris Richards' left-footed goal off a free kick from Sebastian Berhalter. 'We need to be calm,' Pochettino said. 'This is the second victory in a row in the competition. We still need to be improve. The competition is going to be tougher.' Richards' goal was the lone moment of finesse from a U.S. attack that scored five goals against Trinidad and Tobago, and then looked mostly stagnant and stifled by Saudi Arabia on a steamy night in Texas. There were a couple of glaring defensive lapses, as well. Richards had to track back to save the U.S. from an early deficit when a mistake by Alex Freeman nearly surrendered a goal in the first half. The Americans' two wins in the tournament so far have come against a Trinidad and Tobago team ranked No. 100 in the world, and No. 58 Saudi Arabia. They will end Group D play Sunday against No. 83 Haiti in Arlington, Texas. Pochettino dismissed the low ranking for Saudi Arabia, noting its first-round victory over eventual champion Argentina in the 2022 World Cup. 'It wasn't an easy game. They are very competitive,' Pochettino said. 'They have quality.' The U.S. will have to navigate a tournament that will only get tougher with a roster Pochettino stitched together with many of the usual stars and starters sitting out for personal reasons, injuries or playing in the Club World Cup. Missing the tournament for the U.S. are regulars Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, Gio Reyna, Antonee Robinson, Folarin Balogun and Sergiño Dest. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. And forward Haji Wright did not suit up for the match against Saudi Arabia because team officials said he has an 'issue' with his left Achilles tendon. The team did not elaborate. Richards, who scored his second career goal for the Americans, said he sees a roster that is growing as it navigates the Gold Cup in its last competitive matches before the 2026 World Cup, which the U.S. will co-host with Mexico and Canada. 'We're on to the next round. More than anything, we sent a statement to the rest of CONCACAF we're not taking anyone lightly,' Richards said. 'The Gold Cup is a lot longer than anything we've played in so far, but CONCACAF teams might not have as much quality, but they definitely have fight.' ___ AP soccer:
Winnipeg Free Press
6 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Richards' 2nd-half goal lifts US over Saudi Arabia 1-0 and into CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Defender Chris Richards scored with a flick of the ball off a second-half free kick to lift the United States to a 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia on Thursday night, sending the Americans on to the CONCACAF Gold Cuo quarterfinals. Richards tracked the ball as it flew into the box on a curving free kick from Sebastian Berhalter in the 62nd minute to tap the ball with his left foot past Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Nawaf Al Aquidi. The win and the 1-1 draw between Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti in Group D's other match Thursday in Houston, clinched a knockout berth for the Americans, who improved to 42 wins, one loss and five draws in group play. The U.S. has won its group in 16 of 17 Gold Cups, and closes Group D play on Sunday against Haiti at Arlington, Texas. U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino stuck with the same lineup that produced a 5-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday, the first time he made no changes in consecutive matches since taking over the program last October. But playing against No. 58 Saudi Arabia, the 16th-ranked Americans showed little of the attack firepower they displayed against the No. 100 Soca Warriors. The match saw few real chances on goal by either team. The Americans had just one shot in the first half. Richards' speed to track back to cover for Alex Freeman's mistake and block a shot kept Saudi Arabia from a 1-0 lead. Matt Freese got his second consecutive start in goal for the U.S. and third in four matches as he appears to have displaced Matt Turner. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The Gold Cup represents the last competitive test for the Americans ahead of the 2026 World Cup. As co-host with Mexico and Canada, the U.S. is an automatic qualifier for the World Cup. The Americans limped into the Gold Cup on a four-match losing streak that included a 4-0 rout by Switzerland in their final tune-up. And with many of the top players either sitting out this tournament for personal reasons, injuries or playing in the Club World Cup, Pochettino selected a roster full of relatively untested and unproven players. Missing the tournament for the U.S. are regulars Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, Gio Reyna, Antonee Robinson, Folarin Balogun and Sergiño Dest, ___ AP soccer:
