The cuban softball team qualified this Tuesday for the super round of the men’s World Cup held in Auckland, New Zelanda, after achieving an unprecedented victory over the host team in these fights.
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the ninth inning, when third baseman Yesander Rodríguez hit a bases-loaded hit that left the New Zealanders lying on the field, according to a note published in the sports portal Hit.
??? What a performance by Alain Roman!
?️ Roman is our Mizuno / WBSC Player of the Day at the Men’s Softball World Cup.
?Roman led Cuba to defeat host New Zealand to reach the last spot in the Super Round! #MensSoftballWC pic.twitter.com/mh39eKup7P
— WBSC ⚾? (@WBSC) November 30, 2022
The game turned into a specular pitch duel between the Cuban Alain Román and the local Daniel William, and with the dramatic definition the Cuban team fulfilled its objective of improving the tenth place reached in the Czech Republic 2019 edition.
Román allowed only three hits to the hosts’ battery, struck out 11 and knew how to get out of complications, especially those generated by granting six tickets. Due to his performance, he was considered the most outstanding player of the match and of the day in the tournament.
The Cuban offense also added three hits, but was more timely against the shipments of Daniel, who retired 18 batters via strikes.
With this outcome, the Cuban team guaranteed the crossing of the round by finishing in third place in group A, behind the teams of Argentina, the current champion of the contest, and the United States.
The South Americans ruined Cuba’s debut with a 3-1 victory, and the Americans prevailed in the particular duel with a score of 8-4.
Cuba will drag that 0-2 balance to the Super Round that will define the first six places in the tournament. In that instance, the players led by the experienced manager Leonardo Cárdenas will face the powerful team of Australia on Wednesday night (Cuban time).
