Muscat: Oman skipper Zeeshan Maqsood said he wanted to take his team to their third successive T20 World Cup proper as the eight teams geared up for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier A.
Oman had made their maiden appearance in the T20 World Cup in 2016 in India and also made their presence felt in the 2021 edition which was co-hosted by Oman.
“We are happy with our preparations and the win against the in-form UAE team in the concluding game of the quadrangular T20 series was a big motivation for us. We have made it to two successive T20 World Cups, and I am hopeful that we can make it a hat-trick,” said the allrounder.
Oman are in Group A along with Nepal, Canada and Philippines.
The Qualifier A will be a golden opportunity for the likes of Test-playing Ireland to make their way to the World Cup as well and their skipper Andrew Balbirnie echoed the sentiments.
“We have been pretty inconsistent and deserved to be here. But we know that when we play well, we can beat any team. The short and sharp format of the game leaves less scope for complacency. There are not many occasions when we get the favourite tag. So, I am happy to have it. Usually, it has been the other way round when we, as underdogs, have upset some of the top teams.”, said the skipper.
Ireland, who are considered favourites, have been a fixture at six of the last seven editions of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
The Irish will compete along with UAE, Germany and Bahrain in Group B.
Meanwhile, UAE skipper Ahmed Raza was focused on qualification.
“We all know what these Qualifiers mean to the participating nations. We haven’t qualified for the global showpiece since 2014 where I played. The boys are all motivated and are obsessed with the goal we have set out to achieve. Hopefully, we can perform well in all aspects of the game and qualify.”
Raza felt the exposure at the recently concluded quadrangular series provided the UAE with the requisite confidence going into the prestigious Qualifier.
Germany skipper Venkat Ganesan is simply ecstatic at the prospect of playing against some of the more established cricketing nations and having a go at them.
“The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier A here in Oman is a great opportunity to showcase how far German cricket has come. We have a team that is a mix of different cultures as the squad has players from varied nationalities. We have players who have roots in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and South Africa. They bring together different styles and over the past few years, the game has grown fast in Germany.”
In Sandeep Lamicchane, Nepal will have an IPL product and one of the youngest skippers in world cricket. Lamicchane felt Nepal have a talented and well-balanced side to qualify as one of the top two teams.
“We see our chances as good to qualify. In this format, it doesn’t matter if we play against a Test-playing rival or Associate nation. Nepal will be a tough team to beat as we have a good mix of senior and youngsters. As a captain, I think that there is a lot of responsibility on my shoulders, and I would love to make it a memorable one. It is our dream to play in the World Cup. I don’t think being a young captain would be an issue as I have the full support of my seniors. I am blessed to have them around them.”
