Oman beat World Cup debutants Papua New Guinea by 10 wickets

Sports Sunday 17/October/2021 16:01 PM
By: ICC
Oman beat World Cup debutants Papua New Guinea by 10 wickets
Bilal took the first wicket of the tournament when he got the ball to shape in to Tony Ura, who edged onto his stumps.

Muscat: Oman beat World Cup debutants Papua New Guinea by 10 wickets with 38 balls to spare in the opening game of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at Amerat cricket stadium on Sunday. It was a comprehensive win for Oman as they finished the match inside 14 overs. 

PNG overcame a disastrous start where they were 0/2 to post 129/9 against Oman in the opening game of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

The revival was thanks to a national record third-wicket stand of 81 off 60 balls between captain Assad Vala and Charles Amini. Vala was the top scorer of the PNG innings, striking an entertaining 43-ball 56.

However, the middle order couldn’t capitalise. Zeeshan Maqsood ran through the line-up, picking up the best figures in T20Is by any Oman bowler.

Put in to bat, PNG lost both openers in the first two overs of the match with Oman's new-ball pair of Bilal Khan and Kaleemullah causing havoc.

Bilal took the first wicket of the tournament when he got the ball to shape in to Tony Ura, who edged onto his stumps. The next over, Kaleemullah foxed Lega Siaka with his outswing, before a straighter one was chopped onto the stumps.

Amini and Vala, though, remained unperturbed and kept up the attack. Amini was the aggressor early on in the stand, getting going with a couple of boundaries, before taking on Nadeem for a six over midwicket.

The team fifty came off another six off the bat of Vala, who quickly caught up to his partner.

The partnership had guided the World Cup debutants to 70 at the halfway mark when a direct hit from Mohammad Nadeem broke the stand. Amini, who had set off for a single from the non-striker’s end, couldn’t make it back in time as Nadeem did a smart bit of work off his own bowling.

Vala, who needed medical attention following a collision with the bowler, brought up a fine fifty with a straight six. However, he fell looking to up the ante, as Jatinder Singh ran in from long-on to take a good high catch. 

The loss of Vala in the 15th over with the team score at 100 triggered a collapse. The middle and lower order could only add 29 more, even as the Oman bowlers were aided by excellent fielding.

Maqsood spun the momentum his team’s way, by sending back Norman Vanua, Sese Bau and Kiplin Doriga in the same over. Excellent work by Nadeem, who held his balance in the deep to take a high catch of Damien Ravu, gave the skipper his fourth wicket. He finished with 4/20.