Dubai, October 17, 2021 (PPI-OT):Oman captain Zeeshan Maqsood was asked at the toss which of his players were most dangerous to Papua New Guinea. He listed four names and then chuckled: “also, myself.”
Much is demanded of those who lead Associate nations – rarely out of the game, marshalling uneven resources, often shouldering the burden with willow and ball in hand.
Both skippers stepped up to the plate in an absorbing opening game of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, but Maqsood’s stunning spell of left-arm spin helped spark a 10-wicket win.
The first ball of the 13th over of the PNG innings was a dot ball, but it was the game’s narrative writ large. A clash of two strong-willed captains, Maqsood and Assad Vala, neither giving an inch.
With dangerman Charles Amini run out for 37 but counterpart Vala still going strong at the crease, Maqsood brought himself on to bowl.
With his very first ball, the 33-year-old leapt down to field off his own bowling and clattered into Vala, bringing him down and nearly seriously injuring his ankle. Game on.
But Vala emerged as clear winner of the first stanza, crashing Maqsood’s bowling through cover for four and then lifting him down the ground for six to bring up a half-century in 40 balls.
Maqsood didn’t waste time in reacting. He took himself out of the attack, going back to pace and it worked, with Kaleemullah returning to draw a leading edge from Vala and dismiss him for 56.
The next over, Maqsood came back and took three wickets in five balls. From 102/4, when Vala departed, they were 113/7 and Oman had the game at their mercy.
It was a masterclass in cricketing leadership. The skill of never being too proud to admit you are wrong, but never quick to underestimate your own ability.
From that point PNG would never reach a total to truly challenge Oman, with Sese Bau (13) the only batter other than Vala and Amini to reach double figures.
They set their hosts a target of 130 from 20 overs, about 50 runs shy of where they needed to be.
Oman came into the opening game as the Associate nation with perhaps the strongest claim on a Super 12 spot and that is how they leave it.
This was their second win at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and they are a far better team than the one that beat Ireland on their debut in 2016. They have risen from 29 to 18 in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings.
It was a day to remember for all those who have been involved in that process. On Omani Women’s Day, an all-female marching band set the scene for a glorious day in Al Amerat.
But it wasn’t all sunshine and roses – the Oman squad came back from ‘hibernation’ and into intense training only five or six weeks ago, and it showed in their fielding which was ragged on occasion.
Duleep Mendis’s side will know that, given the high standards they now set. That’s a sign of how far they come – and on the strength of this display, how far they’re going.
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