Oman strong enough to make it to Super 12: Ex-skipper
Former Oman captain Sultan Ahmad feels the current Oman team is strong enough to qualify for the Super 12 of the T20 World Cup beginning on Sunday.
In an exclusive chat with Observer, Sultan, who steered Oman to a memorable World T20 debut, said the team is a mixture of experienced and young players.
Oman stunned Ireland by two wickets to post their first ever win in the India 2016 edition of the global tournament.
Oman’s qualification to the World Cup and the surprise win against giantkillers Ireland had put the country on the cricket map.
The Sultanate team has done commendably well after making debut at the World Cup.
Sultan says that the current squad has lot more expectations on them compared to the team under him.
“Now since the team has come a long way after playing in their first World Cup. We had no expectations on us but the players now face some expectations based on their past performances.”
“I am confident that the current squad is capable of achieving the target set by Oman Cricket.
The team is capable of handling the pressure with the help of Test great Duleep Mendis.”
ALL-ROUNDERS RULE
Sultan said Oman’s strong point is presence good allrounders in the team.
“Oman team is full of all-rounders and this makes the team unpredictable to the opponents. The batting depth is also good and crucial for the Twenty20 matches.”
The former captain said Oman players good experience in T20 and home venue factor will definitely favour the Sultanate in the Group B matches. “All the players are well experienced with the format. I feel the home factor will push Oman to good performance in the crucial matches.”
Sultan said the Sultanate will be strong contenders in all the three matches in the group against PNG, Bangladesh and Scotland.
“I hope the players will bring out their best in the World Cup’’, he concluded.