MUSCAT- Oman U19 cricketers are all geared up to put up a good performance at the upcoming ICC U19 Men's CWC Division 2 Asia 2024 event, which will be held in Thailand from February 26-March 5.
Oman, coached by Syed Aamir Kaleem, will be hoping to book a spot in the ICC U19 CWC Men’s Division 1- Asia as one of the two finalists from the eight-nation tournament in Thailand.
Oman have been placed in Group B along with Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, and Bhutan while Group A comprises Bahrain, Thailand, Kuwait, and Malaysia.
Rahil Habibulla has been named skipper of Oman and his deputy will be Saumya Sampat.
Oman launch their campaign on February 26 and play Hong Kong on February 28 before concluding their Group engagement with a match against Bhutan on March 1.
Speaking before the team’s departure to Thailand, Oman U19 head coach Aamir Kaleem said, 'We have had quite fresh bunch of boys forming the squad on this tour. We have had our camp since early January, working meticulously on various aspects such as skill, fielding, strength and conditioning."
He added, "During the camp, we played quality senior sides and also held intra-squad match scenarios to pick our right combination for the tournament. I am pleased with the progress and the boys are confident."
A former Oman International, Aamir Kaleem said, "The good thing is that the boys are in positive space and we are looking forward to playing quality cricket in the coming few days. We certainly aim to do well and bring glory, more importantly, qualify for the next stage. I hope the boys bring out their best on the field and perform as a unit. The key would be for them to adapt to the match conditions quickly."
In the past, Oman U19 boys participated at home when the ICC U19 CWC Men’s Division 2 Asia was hosted in Muscat in 2022.
However, the boys lost in the semi-finals to Hong Kong and failed to qualify. Recently, the boys played in the ACC U19 Premier Cup. They had finished second in their group and failed to make it to the semi-finals.
Aamir Kaleem's boys will hope to end the recent disappointments, this time, at the Thailand tournament and qualify for the ICC U19 Men's Division 1 Asia.
Squad : Rahil Habibulla (captain), Saumya Sampat (vice-captain), Prathiesh HR, Jeet Shah, Varshieth Dinesh, Thineth Sumanasekera, Gaurav Dinesh, Aneek Chakraborty, Arya Sampat, Omidu Medagoda, Siddharth Shankar, Rohan Ramachandran, Nitish Nadendla, Wajih Abbas.
Officials: Head Coach: Syed Aamir Kaleem, assistant coach: Syed Amir Ali, manager : Sher Mohammed Al Balushi.
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