MUSCAT: Oman, the hosts of the ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup, exited the tournament with a subdued performance following a six-wicket defeat to India A in their final match of Group B at the Oman Cricket Academy ground on Wednesday.
This loss marked Oman's third consecutive defeat in the competition, with India A securing the top spot in the group with a perfect record, thereby clinching a spot in the semi-finals against Afghanistan A.
In pursuit of a modest target of 141, India A's opening pair, Abhishek Sharma and Abhijeet Rawat, laid a solid foundation, reaching a score of 35 in just four overs. Jay Odedra was the first to break through for Oman, dismissing Rawat for 8, caught by Sufyan Mehmood.
The next over saw Karan Sonavale strike, removing Sharma, who was caught by Samay Shrivastav, leaving India at 43/2.
India’s captain, Tilak Varma, and Ayush Badoni then took charge, adding 55 runs by the conclusion of the powerplay. Varma's aggressive approach was evident early on, hitting a six and a four in his initial ten balls, including a towering six off Odedra and a well-placed cover drive. Inspired by Varma, Badoni launched a full-scale attack in the 10th over, scoring 24 runs off Shrivastav, which included two sixes and three boundaries.
Badoni reached his half-century off just 25 balls before being dismissed for 51, caught by Sonavale off Aamir Kaleem. The 85-run partnership with Varma for the third wicket was the highest for India A.
Oman managed to secure one more wicket as Sufyan Mehmood dismissed Nehal Wadhera cheaply, but it was insufficient as Ramandeep Singh sealed India’s victory with a second six, completing the chase with 28 balls to spare. Varma remained unbeaten on 36 from 30 balls, including a boundary and two sixes.
Earlier, Oman struggled after a steady start from the openers Jatinder Singh (17) and Aamir Kaleem (13), who put together a 21-run partnership. However, Oman quickly found themselves in trouble at 33/3 after losing Sonavale for a duck. Wasim Ali and Mohammad Nadeem steadied the innings with a 47-run partnership, but boundaries were scarce.
Mohammad Nadeem anchored the innings with a well-constructed 41 runs off 49 balls, while Hammad Mirza provided late fireworks, smashing 28 not out off 15 balls, including two sixes and a boundary, elevating Oman to a total of 140/5.
Brief scores: Oman 140/5 (Jatinder Singh 17, Wasim Ali 24, Mohammad Nadeem 41, Hammad Mirza 28 n.o.; Rasikh Salam 1/23, Nishant Sandhu 1/12, Ramandeep Singh 1/2) lost to India A 146/4 in 15.2 overs (Ayush Badoni 51, Abhishek Sharma 34,
