Oracle congratulates 'AI engineer' Saurabh Netravalkar after USA reaches T20 World Cup's Super Eight; pacer responds

The United States of America (USA) created history on Friday when they qualified for the Super Eight stage of the T20 World Cup in their very first appearance at the tournament. The USA famously defeated the previous edition's finalists, Pakistan, in a stunning result last week, and also registered a win over neighbours Canada. While the side lost to India, its qualification to the next round was confirmed after the match against Ireland was washed out in Lauderhill.

One of the side's star performers was the India-born Saurabh Netravalkar, who switched to the USA early in his cricketing career. Netravalkar, who represented Mumbai, has played age-group cricket alongside Indian captain Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav and is currently working as an AI engineer with multinational company Oracle.

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Netravalkar has picked four wickets in three matches; two came in the win against Pakistan which made him an overnight sensation. The remaining two came against India, where he dismissed two of the greatest Indian batters of this generation – Rohit and Virat Kohli.

As USA qualified for the next round and also booked a direct berth in the next edition of the T20 World Cup in 2026, Oracle congratulated Netravalkar. Taking to its official X account, Oracle wrote, “So proud of our very own AI engineer and cricket star @Saurabh_Netra! @usacricket making history in #T20WorldCup.”

Netravalkar also responded to the message from his employers, thanking them for supporting his cricketing career. “Thank you so much @Oracle for your support in enabling me to pursue my passion alongside my tech career!” wrote the USA pacer.

The US cricket team includes eight cricketers of Indian descent, many of whom are on temporary H1-B visas, which permit companies to hire foreign employees. These players are part of an effort to revive cricket in the country, 180 years after the USA hosted the first-ever international cricket match. This historic match between the USA and Canada took place at St George's Cricket Club in New York in 1844.

USA's opponents in Super Eight stage

The USA will have a series of tricky opponents in the Super Eight stage of the tournament. The side will first take on South Africa, who are yet to lose a game despite close shaves against Netherlands and Nepal in the group stage. They will, then, take on the high-flying hosts West Indies before meeting one of England and Scotland in their final match of the Super Eight.