USA (2pts) 194-4, beat Bermuda (0pts) 188-9

So how good are Bermuda?

Are they just a team that beat up on three lesser powers before failing in the face of their first serious opposition?

Or are they as good as the likes of Canada and USA, and perhaps better, but had a bad day at the worst possible time?

The answer probably lies somewhere in between, and may only become apparent after tomorrow's game against Canada, which is still a tournament decider.

Certainly there were good and bad aspects to yesterday's defeat. Bermuda's total was always likely to be too low, and the way that the batsmen allowed USA spinners Steve Massiah and Lennox Cush to dominate proceedings will also be a cause for concern.

Also of concern will be the fact that two of the top four batsmen failed again to get runs, although Fiqre Crockwell (1) and David Hemp (8) will point to questionable umpiring decisions as mitigating factors in their dismissals.Not that that will be of much comfort to Crockwell, who will be as frustrated as anyone at his current lack of runs.

Bermuda were also a fast bowler short, as they knew they would be. And it seems as if yesterday might have been a game too far for opening bowlers Jordan DeSilva and Kevin Tucker.

Both are carrying knocks, as is Jekon Edness, who suffered a slight thigh strain while batting and was unable to keep wicket yesterday.

Losing teams often complain that 'the luck wasn't with us', or the 'officials were against us', but more often than not, that is a smokescreen to hide a poor performance. In this case however, Bermuda might have a point.

Stephen Outerbridge was two runs shy of a well-deserved half century when he was the victim of a poor umpiring decision. Hemp too fell to the same fate, given out stumped when he was clearly in his ground.

From 77-1, with Outerbridge and Edness (26) having put 76 on for the second wicket, Bermuda found themselves at 91-4 and on the back foot.

It was a position they never really recovered from. Massiah took two for 33 from his ten overs, Cush picked up four wickets for just 30 runs, and such was the pair's dominance, that by the time Irving Romaine (34) was out with five overs remaining, Bermuda had managed to score just 70 runs in 20 overs, and were 161-6.

Not that this should take away from a fine USA performance, or hide the fact that Bermuda under-performed in key areas. But a catch here, and a few more runs there, and who knows what might have happened.

By such margins are games won and lost, and man of the match Massiah, who scored 67 and put on 113 for the second wicket with Sushil Nadkarni (57), can hardly be blamed for taking his second chance after he was dropped by stand-in wicketkeeper Crockwell when he had scored just one.

Crockwell put down two difficult chances behind the stumps, the second let Cush (22*) off the hook, but USA were 157-2 at that stage and the game was as good as over.

Even so, Bermuda kept fighting, and when Massiah and Aditya Thyagarajan fell in quick succession, USA were 168-4 and wobbling. If the home side had, had another 40 runs to play with, then who knows what might have happened.

Cush lived a charmed life towards the end, and was nearly out twice in one over when he slashed at balls that flew just out of the reach of Rodney Trott at gully.

The end, when it came, was swift and brutal, with Rashad Marshall belting Jim West for consecutive straight sixes, to give his side a six wicket win with 20 balls to spare.

USA deserved their victory, and no one can deny them that. But Bermuda aren't too far behind, if at all, and will still feel they have everything to play for when they face Canada at the Nationals Sports Centre tomorrow.