Cricket is a quintessentially English game—P. G. Wodehouse’s earliest books were about cricket, which he played seriously himself in school.

As a result of colonialism, it’s spread to other countries, some of which frequently play it better than England.

Australia has the advantage of year-round cricketing weather, whereas in England, the game can only be played when it’s not miserable out, which only a percentage of the English year, so Australia vs. England games have been serious since 1882.

It’s also popular in the West Indies, where a large percentage of the population has natural athleticism.

Learie Constantine, who played Test cricket in the 1920s and 1930s, was one of the first great West Indian players.	Daren Sammy, who captained the West Indies team to two major victories.

However, because cricket only became really big after the American Revolution, it’s never been big in the U.S., although there was a Hollywood Cricket Club in 1930s founded by expatriate character actors.

Now there’s a massive influx of Indian immigrants, and as result of them being in America, the ”American” cricket team just beat Pakistan, leading immigrant enthusiasts like Eric Boehm over at Reason magazine to declare it a victory for immigration.

An upset that reverberated around the cricket-watching world was made possible by America's most potent superpower: immigration.https://t.co/zvtBQiK20v

— reason (@reason) June 12, 2024

The dudes who authored one of the biggest upsets in cricket history didn't come to the US on visas to play cricket. They came here to study and to work -- but they also improved America's chances at winning in other ways.

That's what immigration does.https://t.co/Jgs858vSKB

— Eric Boehm (@EricBoehm87) June 10, 2024

Boehm writes in Reason that

The New York Times called Thursday’s win ”a humiliation in Pakistan, where cricket is the most popular sport and part of the national identity”; it added that ”many Americans were oblivious” to the result.

But we shouldn’t be oblivious about why the result was possible. It’s because of immigration. As The Indian Express points out, at least six players on the American team are of Indian descent, including several who are in the U.S. on work visas and who play on the national team essentially as a hobby.

Immigration Fueled America’s Stunning Cricket Upset Over Pakistan
There’s an obvious lesson here. 
By Eric Boehm, June 10, 2024

The Indian Express piece he links to is headed:

Pakistan thought it was playing USA, turned out to be Team India H-1B
With as many as six cricketers of Indian descent, most of them on temporary H1-B visas that allow companies to hire overseas employees, featuring in the historic win, the joke would be a hit in the immigrant community.
Written by Sandip G, June 9, 2024

Pakistan thought it was playing USA, turned out to be Team India H-1B--h/t @adamtooze https://t.co/OZyOTM7xca

— Spencer Reiss 💎 (@spencerreiss) June 8, 2024

Now, it’s always funny when a team that thinks it’s invincible comes up against what they think should be an easy mark, only to find out that some of the players on the other team are much better than expected.

But while the joke may be ”a hit in the immigrant community” it’s not a victory for America. And it’s only possible because of the displacement of American tech workers by Indian immigrants on H-1B visas, and if you ask me, what that does to American workers is really not cricket.