Saturday 20 / April / 2024
Muscat: In what can be termed as a surprise recall, Oman Cricket selectors have picked former captain Sultan Ahmed while announcing a 19-member team for the forthcoming Associate Twenty20 Tournament to be held in Dubai.
For many the inclusion of the wicketkeeper-batsman is as surprising as it was shocking when Oman Cricket took the decision to drop him back in April, right after returning from India where Sultan led the Sultanate squad in the historic participation in the World T20 Championship preliminary rounds.
When contacted by Times Sport, the soft-spoken Sultan though refused to make any comments — probably tied down by Players Code of Conduct, he sounded mighty pleased with his return to the team just over seven months after being shown the door.
The former skipper maintained a similar silence when he was omitted from the team that toured Jersey for ICC World Cricket League Division 5 Competition, instead preferring his on field performances do the talking.
In the new season, Sultan showed at over 38 years of age he is still as good as any in Oman cricket and proved his critics wrong with excellent performances, including impressive batting displays.
This season, his best batting performances in the Premier Division so far being a valuable 92-run knock in Raha’s 133-run victory over Sinha and a equally valuable 47 in 43-run win against Al Turki.
Those performances certainly helped Sultan make his way back into the Oman national cricket team.
Good for another year
Head coach Duleep Mendis, meanwhile, said Sultan Ahmed is picked because there is ‘another year’ of good cricket left in him.
The Sri Lankan great, who is also the Chief Development Officer of Oman Cricket, said: “Sultan Ahmed is in good form right now. I think there is at least another year of good cricket left in him.”
“Considering that 2017 is going to be a very crucial year for Oman Cricket as we will be taking part in the ICC World Cricket League Division 3 and then hopefully we will also make it to the Division 2, it will be good to have a player like Sultan Ahmed with the squad,” Duleep Mendis added.
Interestingly, Swapnil Khadye who kept wickets in the recent ICC WCL Division 4 in the Los Angeles is not included in the squad. And so is pace bowler Munis Ansari.
Also making a comeback into the team are young Aaqib Ilyas, fast bowler Bilal Khan and Omani talent Shuaib Ismail Al Balushi.
There are also a few new faces in Assarain’s wicketkeeper-batsman Naseem Kushi, Enhance’s off-spinning all-rounder Nester Dhamba and Raha's Khurram Khan.
Though Oman Cricket has not named the captain, the 19-player squad includes present 50-over team captain Ajay Lalcheta, Khawar Ali, Zeeshan Maqsoood, Arun Poulose, Jatinder Singh, Ajay Lalcheta, Rajesh Ranpura, Sufyan Mahmood, Zeeshan Siddique, Mohammed Nadeem, Mehran Khan and Kaleemullah.
"All these 19 players have been selected for the Dubai tournament. We have not named the captain, which we will do it in due course," Duleep Mendis said.
Ideal preparation
Meanwhile, Duleep Mendis said the T20 tournament in Dubai will be tough but will serve as an ideal preparation for Oman’s forthcoming challenges.
The tournament, being held under the blessings of International Cricket Council (ICC) and thanks to the active involvement of Emirates Cricket Board CEO David East and ICC Academy-Dubai Sports City General Manager Will Kitchen, will take place from January 14 to 20.
Besides Oman, the other ICC Associate nations that will take part in the tournament are the Netherlands, the UAE, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea, Scotland, Afghanistan and Ireland.
“The Dubai tournament is going to be a very tough one. There will be some of the best Associate nations competing for the top honours. So it is not going to be easy,” Duleep Mendis said.
“But we want to do well in the tournament. As I said 2017 is going to be a very crucial year for us. The participation in this tournament will help us prepare better for the ICC WCL Division 3 and hopefully for the Division 2 as well,” he added.
Oman squad: Khawar Ali, Zeeshan Maqsoood, Arun Poulose, Jatinder Singh, Ajay Lalcheta, Rajesh Ranpura, Sufyan Mahmood, Zeeshan Siddique, Mohammed Nadeem, Bilal Khan, Mehran Khan, Kaleemullah, Nester Dhamba, Aaqib Ilyas, Khurram Khan, Sultan Ahmed, Naseem Kushi, Amir Ali and Shuaib Ismail.
