MUSCAT: Oman achieved a thrilling two-run victory over Bahrain in a pivotal group stage match of the Gulf Cup T20 Championship on Tuesday at the ICC Academy ground in Dubai, ensuring their title defense remains intact.
This win marked the second for the team coached by Duleep Mendis, following a defeat to the UAE in their previous match. Oman had initially started their title defense with a victory against Qatar in the six-nation tournament.
With this result, Oman remains in contention for a place in the final, currently positioned third in the standings, tied on points with Kuwait and Bahrain, each having 4 points. Kuwait leads with a superior net run rate (NRR) of 0.601, while Oman follows with 0.217, and Bahrain trails closely at 0.178. The UAE tops the group with 6 points from three matches.
In the match on Tuesday, Oman batted first and set a modest target of 130 runs for 8 wickets in their allotted 20 overs.
Mohammad Nadeem was the standout performer, scoring a determined 47 runs off 49 balls, which helped Oman recover from an early collapse.
A crucial fifth-wicket partnership of 50 runs between Nadeem and Vinayak Shukla, who contributed 33 runs off 24 balls, was instrumental in maintaining the momentum after Oman found themselves at 52 for 4 in the ninth over. Shukla's brisk innings, along with Sufyan Mehmood’s 11 runs and Wasim Ali’s contribution of 10, brought Oman to a total of 130.
Bahrain's bowlers exerted significant pressure, with Imran Khan (2/19), Imran Anwar (2/29), and Rizwan Butt (2/23) being the standout performers. Abdul Majid added one wicket as they successfully restricted Oman to a modest score.
In their pursuit of 131 runs, Bahrain encountered significant challenges as Oman's bowlers, spearheaded by Mehran Khan and Mohammad Nadeem, delivered early strikes, leaving Bahrain at 46/2 after eight overs. Prashant Kurup (5) fell to Khan, followed closely by Sarfaraz Ali (11). However, Asif Ali mounted a strong response with an impressive 52 runs off 44 balls, aided by Ahmer Bin Nasir, who contributed 25 runs.
The momentum shifted when Aamir Kaleem took the vital wicket of Asif Ali, and Samay Shrivastav added two important dismissals, including Haider Ali (16) and Ahmer Bin Nasir, tipping the scales in favor of Oman.
Bahrain's struggles continued as Shakeel Ahmed claimed the wickets of both Imran Anwar (0) and Sai Sarthak (2), leaving them in a precarious position at 113/7.
In a dramatic final over, Bahrain required 14 runs to secure victory against Shakeel. They managed to score nine runs off the first four balls, including a six from Rizwan Butt. However, a runout on the second-to-last ball involving Junaid Aziz meant they needed five runs off the final delivery, but they could only muster 2 runs, concluding their innings at 128/8 in 20 overs.
Oman is now preparing for their upcoming match against Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, followed by a critical encounter with Kuwait on December 20. The top two teams in the league will compete for the championship the following day.
Brief scores: Oman 130/8 (Mohammed Nadeem 47, Vinayak Shukla 33; Imran Khan 2/19, Imran Anwar 2/29, Rizwan Butt 2/23) defeated Bahrain 128/8 (Asif Ali 52, Ahmed Bin Nasir 25; Shakeel Ahmed 2/20, Samay Shrivastav 2/25).
