[Watch] Steven Taylor grabs a stunner at slip to dismiss Mohammad Rizwan in PAK vs USA T20 World Cup clashÂ
USA opening batter Steven Taylor claimed an early contender for catch of the tournament with his stunning take to send back Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan in their ongoing Group A clash. The 2024 T20 World Cup match is underway at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
Pakistan were put into bat first and Nosthush Kenjige opened the proceedings with a tight first over. Left-arm pacer Saurabh Netravalkar took the new ball from the other end and struck with his second delivery.
Netravalkar bowled a regulation length delivery which came back in slightly and trapped Rizwan, cramping him for room. The batter tried to defend it, but could only manage a thick outside edge.
Steven Taylor at slip had a tough task as the ball was low and quite far to his right. However, he just about managed to get his fingers underneath the ball after completing a well-timed dive to pull off a memorable catch. Have a look at the brilliant take right here:
Wild celebrations followed after the ball stuck in Taylor's palm with fielders surrounding the hero as they got the early breakthrough.
The catch brought out memories of the iconic catch by Bermuda's Dwayne Leverock in the 2007 ODI World Cup against India in Port of Spain. On that occasion, the slip fielder had to dive full length to his right to take the catch as well.
Steven Taylor's catch has sent early ripples in Pakistan's 2024 T20 World Cup opener
The early wicket put Pakistan under considerable pressure, and the USA did not give any breathing room as they continued to put pressure on the top order. The bowling efforts reaped the rewards as Usman Khan followed suit in the third over by holing out to long-off in the next over.
Taylor was called into action yet again as he took another catch to seal Fakhar Zaman's departure in the fifth over. The left-handed batter tried an unorthodox shot, but it was a regulation catch for the opening batter compared to his heroics earlier.
At the time of writing, Pakistan were trying to rebuild while trying to maximize the fielding restrictions. They are struggling at 26-3 after five overs, with the experienced pair of Babar Azam and Shadab Khan sharing the crease.