When the USA plays South Africa at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium to begin their Super Eights campaign in the 2024 Men’s T20 Globe Cup, batter Aaron Jones said his squad is ecstatic to compete against some of the top teams in the globe.

In their first-ever Men’s T20 World Cup appearance—and as co-hosts at that—the USA are having a blast. They finished second in Group A, defeating both Canada and Pakistan and almost defeating India to go to the Super Eight round.

“The guys are thrilled and eager to compete against the world’s top teams. We were eager to accomplish it (enter with vigor). We have been discussing it for the last several years. And now here we are. As I said before matchday one, we’re simply going to enjoy our cricket and play fearless cricket all the time,” Jones told reporters.

Speaking further, Jones said that the team’s approach going into the Super Eight stage wouldn’t be much different from what it was this year, when they won series against Bangladesh and the USA in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup.

“I suppose the idea that we could defeat anybody is where it all began. We’ve played a few series even before the World Cup, and as everyone is aware, we prevailed over Bangladesh—who, to be honest, is a really excellent team.

“We always thought going into the World Cup that we could defeat stronger or larger teams, and we certainly proved that against Pakistan. Going into the Super Eights, everyone will have the same mentality. We want to play competitive cricket, and although losing teaches us valuable lessons, winning is also encouraged.”

According to Jones, the United States of America’s triumph in the T20 World Cup would facilitate the sport’s further penetration into the American athletic scene and draw in domestic fans, some of whom are anticipated to attend the Super Eight games.

“In the Caribbean, Steven Taylor and I have a lot of support.” As it pertains to the whole squad, we will undoubtedly have some support here. I believe that some Americans really took a plane to the Caribbean to help us out.

It’s excellent, but that doesn’t represent us. All we want to do is play hard cricket, no matter what.

“We’ve been talking about competing in the World Cup and scheduling extra matches against all of the other countries. Here we are, carrying it out. Not only is it important for us to qualify for the Super Bowl, but it’s also important for the fans and the next generation of Americans,” he said.

It’s excellent, but that doesn’t represent us. All we want to do is play hard cricket, no matter what.

“We’ve been talking about competing in the World Cup and scheduling extra matches against all of the other countries. Here we are, carrying it out. Not only is it important for us to qualify for the Super Bowl, but it’s also important for the fans and the next generation of Americans,” he said.