Prajapati leads Oman’s batting cost to stun Ireland
Oman 285 for five (Prajapati 72, Maqsood 59, Ilyas 52, Adair 2-47, Little 2-47) beat Ireland 281 for 7 (Dockrell 91*, Tector 52, Bilal 2-64, Butt 2-65) by 5 wickets
On simply the second day of the World Cup Qualifier, Oman introduced concerning the first upset of the match by chasing down 282 in opposition to much-fancied Ireland with 5 wickets in hand and 11 balls to spare in Bulawayo.
Kashyap Prajapati, Aqib Ilyas and captain Zeeshan Maqsood all scored essential fifties as Oman went concerning the chase with utmost professionalism. At no level did they appear hurried, they stitched partnerships at each nook and registered a historic maiden ODI win in opposition to a Full Member nation to activate delirious scenes within the dugout .
That Ireland reached 281 was right down to George Dockrell‘s career-best 89-ball 91 after Oman’s spinners had the Ireland batters on a leash within the center overs.
Sent in to bat, the brand new opening pair of Andy McBrine and Paul Stirling hit their straps instantly, including 51 runs in 9 overs. With the 9am begin, there was plenty of motion on supply for the quick bowlers, however the Oman quicks Fayyaz Butt and Bilal Khan didn’t capitalise and gave away too many freebies.
However, nearly in opposition to the run of play, Ireland misplaced each openers off consecutive balls. Having simply nailed a pull the earlier ball off Bilal, Stirling went for a similar shot to an analogous ball. The distinction being a fielder had simply moved to deep backward sq. leg and Stirling toe-ended his pull straight down his throat. The very subsequent ball, McBrine picked out mid-off to an innocuous brief ball exterior off.
Things acquired worse for Ireland, with captain Andrew Balbirnie falling for a 19-ball 7 as they misplaced 3 for 18 in seven overs. It was a trial by spin for Ireland, with the trio of Maqsood, Ayaan Khan and Jay Odedra tying them up.
Lorcan Tucker was cleaned up by Ayaan, however Dockrell and Harry Tector added 79 runs for the fifth wicket. Tector fell after his fifty, however Dockrell took the innings deep. He helped Ireland slam 86 runs off the ultimate ten overs. But the truth that they confronted 157 dot balls of their innings was at all times going to hang-out them.
At no stage did Oman look out of depth within the chase. The vibrant sunshine did make issues simpler for batters, however the nervelessness with which Oman acquired concerning the chase was a sight to behold.
Mark Adair acquired the ball to hoop round up high, and had Jatinder Singh edging to second slip. Prajapati and Ilyas, nonetheless, made certain the required run price by no means acquired out of hand. They stored the nice balls out and capitalised on the free ones. Ilyas focused Graham Hume by slamming him for 3 successive fours within the seventh over. The duo added 94 runs off 88 balls for the second wicket earlier than Ilyas top-edged Dockrell to brief superb leg.
Maqsood got here in at No. 4 and added a 63-run stand with Prajapati after which a 56-run partnership with Mohammad Nadeem. At no level did the required price go above six an over because the Oman batters acquired the boundaries often and rotated the strike brilliantly.
Maqsood reached his fifty off 58 balls and whereas he fell quickly after, there have been no flutters within the Oman camp. Nadeem (46 not out), Ayaan (21) and Shoaib Khan (19) all performed their half as Oman cantered dwelling.
Ashish Pant is a sub-editor with ESPNcricinfo