Scotland edge Oman in final-over thriller once more

DUBAI: Oman fell to a 2-wicket defeat against Scotland in their ICC Men’s CWC League 2 encounter at

the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday.

Batting first after winning the toss, opener Kashyap Prajapati fronted Oman’s charge. He made up for

missing out in the earlier games with a spectacular 81-run knock this time around.

While Kashyap was a key feature of Oman’s innings in the first 40 overs, the other batters weren’t able to step up in support during this period. Khawar Ali looked in fine nick for the duration of his stint in the middle, but his dismissal for 25 runs combined with the one of Kashyap 8 overs later, left Oman in choppy waters with the scoreboard reading 152-5 after 39.2 overs.

However, an invaluable 53-run partnership between Mohammad Nadeem and Naseem Khushi bailed Oman out and took them to a formidable first innings score of 225-7. Nadeem finished on an unbeaten 53 while Khushi collected 29 runs himself.

For Scotland, Michael Leask was the star of the show in the first phase of play. He picked up 3 key wickets and also pocketed the catch that brought Kashyap’s time in the middle to an end. Adrian Neill, Mark Watt and Safyaan Sharif claimed the remaining scalps.

Chasing, Scotland’s top-order of Kyle Coetzer, Matthew Cross and Christopher Mcbride combined for just 8 runs. But a 98-run stand between Richie Berrington and George Munsey kept them in the hunt. Berrington in particular fought through visible discomfort to top score with a brilliant 110-ball 73. Munsey scored 43.

The problem for Scotland during the middle overs was a lack of boundaries. 131 deliveries between the 16th and 38th overs saw none. Oman were collectively excellent on the field during this period and kept the pressure on the batters with disciplined bowling and tight fielding. Their efforts succeeded in creating breakthroughs too, as Dylan Budge followed Munsey back to the changing room in the 36th over with the score at 143-5.

However, Scotland’s lower order stepped up in massive fashion to turn the tide in their favour. Michael Leask upped the scoring rate with his 21-run knock and Safyaan Sharif chipped in with a vital 17 runs to further reduce the deficit.

Finally, Mark Watt’s efforts, with the bat for a change, proved enough to seal the win. With 12 runs needed off the final over, he hit two boundaries and finished the game with 1 ball to spare. Watt ended proceedings with 35 runs and collected the Player of the Match award post-game. Bilal Khan and Kaleemullah picked up 3 wickets apiece for Oman.

BRIEF SCORES:

Oman 225-7 in 50 overs (Kashyap Prajapati 81 (106b, 9 x 4), Mohammad Nadeem 53 (51b, 3×4, 1×6); Michael Leask 35-3) lost to Scotland 226-8 in 49.5 overs (Richie Berrington 73 (110b, 5×4); Bilal Khan 3-47, Kaleemullah 3-45) by 2 wickets.