Saurabh Netravalkar registers a forgettable milestone (Source: @achillsoul/x.com)
Just the first day of the T20 World Cup 2026 has been wrapped up, and the world has witnessed the thrills in all three scheduled clashes for the day. The biggest drama unfolded when the USA’s lethal bowling nearly trapped defending champions India in a nerve-wracking showdown.
Though Team India clinched a thrilling victory later on, USA’s fiery bowling earned widespread praise, but bowler Saurabh Netravalkar registered an unwanted feat. His forgettable outing ended with the most expensive spell in T20 World Cup history.
Netravalkar makes unwanted history with costliest bowling in T20 WC
The shortest format of the game is always entertaining, but when it becomes the T20 World Cup stage, the thrills double up. As the 10th edition of the marquee tournament is already live, fans are enjoying some unmissable T20 thrills. As the USA locked horns with Team India, fans witnessed a thrilling encounter.
While bowling first, the USA bowlers wreaked havoc as Team India’s batting lineup had a nightmare on the surface. The Men in Blue batters failed to make any impactful partnership against lethal bowling. As the side earned praises for the bowling brilliance, USA bowler Saurabh Netravalkar had a forgettable outing in the clash.
In the clash, the USA bowler failed to take a single wicket. To make matters worse, he leaked 65 runs in his four overs, posting an economy rate of 16.20. With that, he landed on a forgettable feat of bowling the most expensive spell of the T20 World Cup.
Most expensive T20 World Cup figures
Spell | Player’s Name | Opponent Team |
0/65 | Saurabh Netravalkar | India |
0/64 | Sanath Jayasuriya | Pakistan |
0/63 | Mashrafe Mortaza | Pakistan |
0/61 | Lameck Onyango | Sri Lanka |
0/60 | Stuart Broad | India |
Netravalkar surpasses Sanath Jayasuriya in unwanted record
In the shortest format, fans revel in explosive batting, but bowlers often endure bizarre and tough outings, even legends have faced such struggles in the past. After Netravalkar registered the horrific spell, he surpassed Sri Lankan legend Sanath Jayasuriya in that forgettable list.
The Sri Lankan legend leaked 64 runs against Pakistan in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup. Bangladeshi star Mashrafe Mortaza sits third on the list after a forgettable 0/63 spell against Pakistan in the 2014 edition. Lameck Onyango and Stuart Broad are standing in fourth and fifth positions of the points table.
USA fall short of making T20 World Cup history
As a new entrant in international cricket, the USA made history by defeating Pakistan in the previous T20 World Cup. They had a golden chance to repeat the feat against India in their last match but they fell short. While bowling first, they showcased domination as the Indian batting lineup crumbled under pressure.
But the momentum slipped away in the 2nd innings. Chasing down the 162-run target, the USA batters failed to keep the domination alive. Facing India’s lethal bowling attack, they crumbled, finishing at 132. In the end, they fell short by 29 runs, handing India the victory.
