Friday 19 / April / 2024
Muscat: Sensing the need to prepare its national team for the longer version of the game, Oman Cricket is planning to start a new competition involving two-day matches for its Premier Division teams.
The 75-over-a-side games are scheduled to start at the conclusion of 50-over and T20 tournaments, most probably in March 2020. While Oman has been doing considerably well in T20 tournaments, it has struggled to show similar success in 50-over games due largely to batting failures.
Oman Cricket feels the new 75-over-a-side matches will enable its players to adapt to the needs of the longer games which includes its bowlers finding ways to break partnerships.
“We need the batsmen to bat for long hours and learn to build partnerships. These two-day matches are aimed at helping our players to prepare for the longer versions of cricket which not only require better application of one’s skill set but improved temperament, technique and perseverance to succeed,” said Duleep Mendis, Chief Development Officer, Oman Cricket and head coach of the national team.
“It is also important our bowlers learn to break partnerships which is easier to do in T20 where batsmen are going for their shots and tend to make mistakes. In the longer versions bowlers have to work harder to take wickets and we want our bowlers to enhance their ability to take wickets, particularly when the ball gets older,” added Mendis. Explaining further, he said Oman Cricket had been concerned at the lack of partnerships in its domestic and international games.
“It has been observed that our batsmen are not going for longer innings. They have not shown the keenness to build partnerships. Our bowlers have been focusing on containment. They do not know how to take wickets when the rival batsmen are building partnerships which has often led to games slipping out of our hands. This new tournament will provide our players a platform to overcome their shortcomings. Two full days made available to them to not only work the weaker areas of their game but regain form if they are struggling for runs by spending long hours in the middle,” said the national coach.
“If you have the confidence, if you have the scores behind you, you can cut the dot balls when you come to 50 overs and even execute your game better in T20 matches,” Mendis added.
The six Premier teams, which provide the pool of players for national selection, are Muscat CT, Assarain, Passage to India, Al Turki NMC, IT Works and Renaissance.
The new two-day league tournament will be played with the red ball and white clothing with white sight screens. Each inning is allotted 75 overs unless a side is dismissed in lesser overs.
