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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Kaleemullah, Zeeshan star as Oman off to winning start

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Muscat: Zeeshan Maqsood’s timely half-century and the notable efforts of the bowlers helped Oman get off to a winning start beating Kenya by five wickets in the World Cricket League (WCL) Division III match here on Friday.


Oman got off to a perfect start on home soil as opening bowlers Bilal Khan (2-31) and Kaleemullah (4-26) had Kenya in immediate trouble at eight for three.


Kenya began to slowly rebuild as Gurdeep Singh (25 from 70 balls) and top-scorer Rakep Patel (36 from 64) steadied the ship before Kaleemullah struck again to remove the former caught behind and Jay Odedra (2-25) did likewise to Patel.


Sachin Bhudia’s 34 added some potentially valuable runs late on but Kenya was all out for 164 with four balls of their 50 overs still remaining.


A steady response saw the hosts always in control as the top order of Aqib Ilyas (22), Jatinder Singh (33) and Khawar Ali (24) kept Oman ahead of the run-rate and with wickets in hand.


Captain Zeeshan Maqsood then took over and his unbeaten 53 (including five boundaries) ensured a five-wicket triumph with more than seven overs remaining to get the hosts off to a flyer.


Brief scores: Kenya: 164 all out, 49.2 overs (Rakep Patel 36, Sachin Bhudia 34; Kaleemullah 4-26) lt to Oman: 166-5, 42.5 overs (Zeeshan Maqsood 53 not out, Jatinder Singh 33; Dhiren Gondaria 2-31)


Uganda win


Batting first, Denmark made a promising start as Freddie Klokker (14) and skipper Hamid Shah (31) put on 46 for the opening wicket.


But when Klokker was caught behind by Arnold Otwani off the bowling of Riazat Ali Shah (2-24), and Shah followed in almost exactly the same manner, the tide turned.


Saif Ahmad’s 30 from 46 balls and Mads Henriksen’s patient 43 provided some resistance but Charles Waiswa (4-25) tore through the lower order to bowl Denmark out for 165 from just 44.4 overs. Ugandan captain Roger Mukasa was caught second ball in response but Otwani’s brilliant 88 from just 86 balls, including 15 boundaries, paced the chase perfectly.


He was given some support by Dinesh Nakrani (20) but almost single-handedly put his side in complete control before holing out to leave the score at 130 for five. That gave Denmark a glimmer of hope but Riazat Ali Shah’s unbeaten 29 saw the African side home by five wickets with almost 14 overs remaining.


Brief scores: Denmark 165 all out, 44.4 overs (Mads Henriksen 43, Hamid Shah 31; Charles Waiswa 4-25) lt to Uganda 167-5, 36.2 overs (Arnold Otwani 88, Riazat Ali Shah 29 not out; Saif Ahmad 2-33)


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