Friday 21 / February / 2025
MUSCAT: Oman’s spin-heavy strategy backfired as Nosthush Kenjige’s career-best spell tore through their batting lineup, leading the USA to a commanding 57-run victory in the ICC World Cup League 2 at the Oman Cricket Academy ground on Tuesday.
The left-arm spinner’s five-wicket haul (5-11) proved decisive as Oman collapsed for just 65, their lowest-ever ODI total, while chasing a modest 123-run target. Previously, Oman’s lowest ODI score was 81 against Namibia in Windhoek in April 2019.
With this win, the USA avenged their earlier defeat against Oman in the tri-series and strengthened their position at the top of the points table with 22 points from 16 matches.
Oman remained second with 18 at the end of the tri-series, which also featured Namibia (12 points from 16 games, while Canada, with four games in hand, are third on 16 points.
Batting first, the USA struggled early, losing four wickets inside the first 10 overs. Oman’s spinners, led by Shakeel Ahmed (3-20) and Aamir Kaleem (2-22), ran through the top order, reducing the visitors to 31-5.
However, Milind Kumar (47 off 82, 6x4) held the innings together with two crucial partnerships. He added 30 runs with Aaron Jones (16) for the sixth wicket and another 33 with Sanjay Krishnamurthi (16) for the seventh, helping the USA post 122 before they were bowled out in 35.3 overs.
Oman’s spinners dominated the innings, with nine of the ten wickets falling to them with Kenjige run out.
Shakeel Ahmed finished as the leading wicket-taker of the tri-series with 13 scalps. Samay Shrivastava (2/41), Siddharth Bukkapatnam (1/11), and Jay Odedra (1/23) also played key roles in restricting the USA.
Oman’s batting collapse
Chasing 123, Oman struggled from the outset as both openers, including skipper Jatinder Singh (7), fell cheaply. Hammad Mirza (29 off 43) was the only batter to offer resistance, but he found little support.
Oman’s highest partnership was a modest 22-run stand between Mirza and Hashir Dafedar (9) for the third wicket. The next-best was a 16-run fourth-wicket stand with Sufyan Mehmood (0).
Kenjige’s relentless accuracy triggered a dramatic collapse, as Oman crumbled from 57-5 to 65 all out, losing their last five wickets for just eight runs. He dismissed Vinayak Shukla (5) and then sent back Mirza to leave Oman at 60-6. He swiftly ran through the tail, removing Shakeel Ahmed (0), Jay Odedra (0), and Siddharth Bukkapatnam (0) within three overs. Odedra and Bukkapatnam fell within three balls in Kenjige’s eighth over.
Kenjige was well supported by the USA’s spin attack, with Yasir Mohammad (2-10), Milind Kumar (2-17), and Harmeet Singh (1-25) contributing to Oman’s downfall. Kumar was adjudged the player of the match for his all-round performance.
Meanwhile, Oman’s Jiten Ramanandi made his ODI debut, receiving his first cap from skipper Jatinder Singh.
Brief scores: USA 122 in 35.3 overs (Milind Kumar 47, Aaron Jones 16, Sanjay Krishnamurthi 16; Shakeel Ahmed 3/20, Aamir Kaleem 2/22, Samay Shrivastava 2/41) beat Oman 65 in 25.3 overs (Hammad Mirza 29; Nosthush Kenjige 5/11, Milind Kumar 2/17, Yasir Mohammad 2/10).
