Must-win Oman face tricky Scotland
Published: 04:10 PM,Oct 20,2021 | EDITED : 05:10 PM,Oct 22,2021
This areal view shows cricketers playing during the ICC men's Twenty20 World Cup cricket match between Oman and Bangladesh at the Oman Cricket Academy Ground in Muscat on October 19, 2021. (Photo by Haitham AL-SHUKAIRI / AFP)
Oman will have their task cut out against a rampant Scotland side standing on the cusp of history when they cross swords in the last Group B match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 at the Oman Cricket Academy Ground on Thursday.
After their heartbreaking loss to Bangladesh on Tuesday, Oman face a must-win situation against the Scots to have any hopes of progressing to the Super 12 stage.
If Oman beat Scotland and Bangladesh beat PNG, then Scotland, Bangladesh and Oman would end up with four points each wherein the Net Run Rate (NRR) would come into play.
And then the top two teams with the higher NRR would qualify for the Super 12.
This is Oman’s best scenario to advance and for this to happen they have to ensure they beat Scotland. However, that would take all of Oman’s best efforts to make it happen as Scotland are a team possessed after their huge shape-shifting victory against Bangladesh on the opening day.
Oman will look to get their act together with some better fielding standards compared to the last game and they would expect their middle order batsmen to come good and play some impactful knocks.
There has been an over-emphasis on their best batsman Jatinder Singh to deliver and the right-handed batsman has been in sparkling form smashing 40 against a quality Bangladesh bowling attack. But Oman’s other batters will have to deliver the goods on match day to help the team’s cause.
The positives for Oman have been their bowling as Bilal Khan, Kaleemullah and Fayyaz Butt have been right on the ball with crucial breakthroughs. Aqib Ilyas has been bowling well too with his slow right-arm off-breaks and has been electric on the field getting Oman that critical wicket of Shakib al Hasan in the Bangladesh game.
SCOTLAND RARING TO GO
October 21st could be a red-letter day in the history of Scottish cricket if things go their way.
The Scots are chasing what would be their greatest ever achievement, qualifying for the main round of a World Cup, and their coach Shane Burger is fully aware of the occasion against Oman.
“It’s a hugely significant moment for us as a team and for us as a cricketing nation, we’ve worked very hard to be where we are and are looking forward to the game,’’ Burger added.
“Topping the group and qualifying for the Super 12 was something that we had discussed prior to the tournament and I’m very pleased that we’ve been able to execute our plans,’’ he stated.
After vanquishing Bangladesh in a shock upset in their first game, Scotland has been the taste of the cricketing world as the Associate nation that is on the rise.
And with a probable qualification on the cards, Scotland have everything to play for against a resilient Oman team that would be looking to make an impact of their own.
The Scotland coach had some wonderful things to say about Oman’s organisation of the T20 World Cup.
“All that one has to do is look around and see the fantastic facilities on show and the great hospitality that has been provided. Cricketing wise, the Oman team has been very competitive whenever we have come up against them and most of our games are never over until it is over,’’ he added.
“Tomorrow will be no different and we are looking forward to an exciting contest,’’ Burger said.
GROUP B POINTS TABLE
POS TEAM PLD NRR PTS
1 SCOTLAND 2 +0.575 4
2 OMAN 2 +0.613 2
3 BANGLADESH 2 +0.500 2
4 PNG 2 -1.867 0
After their heartbreaking loss to Bangladesh on Tuesday, Oman face a must-win situation against the Scots to have any hopes of progressing to the Super 12 stage.
If Oman beat Scotland and Bangladesh beat PNG, then Scotland, Bangladesh and Oman would end up with four points each wherein the Net Run Rate (NRR) would come into play.
And then the top two teams with the higher NRR would qualify for the Super 12.
This is Oman’s best scenario to advance and for this to happen they have to ensure they beat Scotland. However, that would take all of Oman’s best efforts to make it happen as Scotland are a team possessed after their huge shape-shifting victory against Bangladesh on the opening day.
Oman will look to get their act together with some better fielding standards compared to the last game and they would expect their middle order batsmen to come good and play some impactful knocks.
There has been an over-emphasis on their best batsman Jatinder Singh to deliver and the right-handed batsman has been in sparkling form smashing 40 against a quality Bangladesh bowling attack. But Oman’s other batters will have to deliver the goods on match day to help the team’s cause.
The positives for Oman have been their bowling as Bilal Khan, Kaleemullah and Fayyaz Butt have been right on the ball with crucial breakthroughs. Aqib Ilyas has been bowling well too with his slow right-arm off-breaks and has been electric on the field getting Oman that critical wicket of Shakib al Hasan in the Bangladesh game.
SCOTLAND RARING TO GO
October 21st could be a red-letter day in the history of Scottish cricket if things go their way.
The Scots are chasing what would be their greatest ever achievement, qualifying for the main round of a World Cup, and their coach Shane Burger is fully aware of the occasion against Oman.
“It’s a hugely significant moment for us as a team and for us as a cricketing nation, we’ve worked very hard to be where we are and are looking forward to the game,’’ Burger added.
“Topping the group and qualifying for the Super 12 was something that we had discussed prior to the tournament and I’m very pleased that we’ve been able to execute our plans,’’ he stated.
After vanquishing Bangladesh in a shock upset in their first game, Scotland has been the taste of the cricketing world as the Associate nation that is on the rise.
And with a probable qualification on the cards, Scotland have everything to play for against a resilient Oman team that would be looking to make an impact of their own.
The Scotland coach had some wonderful things to say about Oman’s organisation of the T20 World Cup.
“All that one has to do is look around and see the fantastic facilities on show and the great hospitality that has been provided. Cricketing wise, the Oman team has been very competitive whenever we have come up against them and most of our games are never over until it is over,’’ he added.
“Tomorrow will be no different and we are looking forward to an exciting contest,’’ Burger said.
GROUP B POINTS TABLE
POS TEAM PLD NRR PTS
1 SCOTLAND 2 +0.575 4
2 OMAN 2 +0.613 2
3 BANGLADESH 2 +0.500 2
4 PNG 2 -1.867 0