Oman have been competitive against both Namibia and Australia, but are still stuck at the bottom of the group table

Shashank Kishore08-Jun-20243:41

O’Brien: Oman could be Scotland’s toughest game yet

Match detailsOman vs Scotland
North Sound, 1pm local timeBig picture – Scotland must be wondering what they have to do to be noticed at the T20 World Cup.Their terrific win over Namibia on a slow Kensington Oval deck was sandwiched somewhere between USA’s Super Over stunner over Pakistan, Canada trumping Ireland, and Afghanistan steamrolling New Zealand.Two nights prior to that result against Namibia, Scotland had England sweating in the rain. And on Sunday, when most eyes will be on , Scotland will take on fellow Associates Oman in Antigua.Related

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But, whether in the spotlight or not, they are where they would have liked to be, and could be closer to their target after the Oman game.Before that, though, they will keep a close eye on Saturday’s game between Australia and England. Scotland, No. 1 in the group prior to that match, will know that a win over Oman will help them control their destiny going into their final group fixture against Australia.George Munsey fired against England, taking down pace and spin alike, overcoming the slowness of the surface with ease. In their second game, Richie Berrington and Michael Leask stood up under pressure to give Scotland the win after a potentially tricky chase of 156.Oman, meanwhile, haven’t performed half as badly as the table suggests. Two losses in two games can be a bitter pill to swallow, but they have competed hard in both. They showed admirable pluck in taking the game against Namibia into a Super Over, and then had Australia in a stranglehold for 14 overs, before it fell apart.One complete performance is what Oman will be after to stay alive, even if only mathematically. Scotland will want to prevent that. This could be a cracking contest between two sides that are ambitious, talented, and looking to hit a higher level.George Munsey is the key man in the Scotland top order•Getty ImagesForm guideScotland WLWLW
Oman LLLWWIn the spotlightOne of the very versatile George Munsey’s strengths is that he can take down spin, like he showed against England. He can play the reverse-sweeps and switch-hits as comfortably as he can hit through the line on good decks. Oman’s attack is spin-heavy, and Munsey’s approach up top could set the tempo as they chase victory to push for the Super Eight stage.A clean striker in club cricket, Kashyap Prajapati made heads turn three years ago when he struck a 138-ball 146 against a Mumbai squad in India. That knock paved the way for his international debut. Since then, he’s largely been hit and miss as his modest T20 record suggests. With scores of 7 and 0 in his first two games, he needs a big score to justify the faith the team management has shown in him.Team newsOman have been three down inside the powerplay in both their games so far, and could make some tweaks to their top order. Will Ayaan Khan get a promotion?Oman (probable XI): 1 Kashyap Prajapati, 2 Pratik Athvale (wk), 3 Aqib Ilyas (capt), 4 Zeeshan Maqsood, 5 Ayaan Khan, 6 Khalid Kail, 7 Shoaib Khan, 8 Mehran Khan, 9 Shakeel Ahmed, 10 Kaleemullah, 11 Bilal KhanScotland have their entire squad to choose from, but don’t seem to have any reason to make changes.Scotland (probable XI): 1 George Munsey, 2 Michael Jones, 3 Brandon McMullen, 4 Richie Berrington (capt), 4 Matthew Cross (wk), 6 Michael Leask, 7 Chris Greaves, 8 Mark Watt, 9 Chris Sole, 10 Brad Wheal, 11 Brad CurrieOman have fought hard but don’t have the points to show•ICC/Getty ImagesPitch and conditionsThe caravan rolls into North Sound as Sir Vivian Richards Stadium hosts its first game of the T20 World Cup. There was a good grass cover on the pitch two days out from the game, but much of it has been shaved off, and batters can hope for a happy time.Stats that matter Scotland and Oman have faced off four times in T20Is, including once at a T20 World Cup, in 2021. Scotland have won all four games chasing Munsey needs 70 more runs to become the second Scotland player with 2000 T20I runs – his captain Berrington was the first Zeeshan Maqsood needs two more wickets to become the second Oman player with 50 T20I wickets after Bilal KhanQuotes”it’s not easy to clear these boundaries when the wind is blowing, so we have to decide from which end you have to bring your best bowler, which end you have to charge as a batter, which bowler you have to look to hit with the wind.”
“I chatted to a few of the net bowlers just there where I was bowling spin with them. They all seem to think it’s pretty flat, which is great. I think our captain, Richard Berrington, has reached out to a few of the local boys and asked them how the conditions are and what the score is like at this time of year, because that’s massively important to know the scores at a different time of year.”