Muscat: Zeeshan Maqsood was the star of the show with his all-round performance for Oman helping them register their second victory in the ICC World Cricket League Division III tournament, beating Singapore by four wickets.
Electing to field first after winning the toss, Oman restricted Singapore to 185/9 in 50 overs. Bilal Khan scalped 3/31 while Zeeshan Maqsood and Khawar Ali picked up two wickets apiece.
Opener Aritra Dutta (38), AE Paraam (33) and CR Suryawanshi (37) were the notable contributors for Singapore.
Chasing 186, Oman were wobbly with Jatinder Singh’s 41 holding them strong up the order despite losing five wickets for 93 runs.
Maqsood’s timely knock of 43 and handy contributions from Mehran Khan (23) and Fayyaz Butt (26) helped Oman get over the line with more than 12 overs to spare.
Zeeshan Maqsood was named the man-of-the-match for his all-round effort.
COACH MENDIS CONCERNED
Oman has now won its second successive game, but coach Duleep Mendis sounded a bit concerned at the ways victories were achieved.
“I would have expected them to finish the games in a better way. We lost too many wickets on a good track. I believe we should have chased this target down a bit more comfortably. However, each win is adding to the team’s confidence and we are looking forward to the next games,” said Duleep Mendis.
“The boys are keeping me on the toes, but I don’t mind the nerves if we are ending up on the winning side. I am sure we are going to be a better side as the tournament progresses,” he added.
Oman will now have two days’ rest before its third game on Tuesday against Denmark.
“Fortunately we have got two days’ break for our boys to have some rest and work on their game and step out in a better frame of mind against Denmark.”
Captain Zeeshan Maqsood, who was adjudged man of the match, said he was playing as per the team’s plan which put more responsibility on senior guys in the side.
“With wickets falling around me, I knew I had to stay out in the middle and play the role my coach has assigned me. He wants me to bat in the middle order and anchor the innings through to the very end and I am glad I was able to do this today,” explained Maqsood.
Commenting on his team’s two victories, he said the boys were looking forward to the tougher games ahead.
“We have won two out of two, but we know we have tougher games ahead and we must perform better to strengthen our chances of winning this tournament,” he added.
Oman captain said his team had suffered due to poor net run rate in previous assignments and he was mindful of the fact.
“We want to win all our games, but we must also keep an eye on the net run rate which may prove crucial in the end. A lot of focus is going to be placed on this in our next games in the competition,” explained Maqsood.
Brief scores: Singapore: 185/9 in 50 overs (Aritra Dutta 38, AE Paraam 33, CR Suryawanshi 37; Bilal Khan 3-31, Zeeshan Maqsood 2-18, Khawar Ali 2-34) lt to Oman: 186/6 in 37.4 overs (Zeeshan Maqsood 43, Jatinder Singh 41, Fayyaz Butt 26; Janak Prakash 3-16).
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