TAROUBA, Trinidad (CMC) — West Indies Emerging Players stumbled in their bid for a semi-final spot in the Super50 Cup when they went down by 43 runs to unfancied United States here Tuesday.

Asked to chase a seemingly straightforward 217 at Brian Lara Stadium, Emerging Players suffered a batting meltdown and were bundled out for 173 in the 45th over.

Kevin Sinclair top scored with a breezy 44 off 46 deliveries batting at number seven, while the in-form Joshua DaSilva struck 31 off 46 but his side never really recovered from a position of 94 for six in the 27th over.

Left-arm spinner Nosthush Kenjige finished with three for 34 but it was the fast bowling pair of Cameron Stevenson (2-27) and Elmore Hutchinson (2-28) who made the early inroads into the innings.

Opting to bat earlier, USA battled their way to 216 for nine off 50 overs, with Timil Patel getting 35, Stevenson hitting a swift 33 off 23 balls and Monank Patel chipping in with 27.

USA struggled to get partnerships going and slipped from 63 for one after Sagar Patel and Steven Taylor both scored 22 in a 39-run, second stand, to find themselves stumbling on 82 for four in the 22nd over.

Nisarg Patel (17) and Monank pushed the score past 100 in a 36-run fifth-wicket stand before a second clatter of wickets, and USA needed Stevenson’s enterprise at the end to get beyond the 200-run mark.

Leg-spinner Yannic Cariah (2-35) and left-arm spinner Camarie Boyce (2-40), both finished with two wickets apiece.

Emerging Players started badly in reply when Gidron Pope fell to the first ball of the second over without a run on the board, and even though there was a recovery courtesy of a 34-run second-wicket stand between DaSilva and Kimani Melius (19), the innings faltered again at 59 for five in the 17th over.

Sinclair, who struck two fours and three sixes, then added 35 for the sixth wicket with Roland Cato (17) and a further 38 for the seventh with Dominic Drakes (28 not out) but the innings eventually collapsed with the last four wickets tumbling for 41 runs.

Emerging players remain on top of Group B, but tied on 16 points with second-placed Trinidad and Tobago Red Force and Guyana Jaguars.