Oman’s campaign ends with defeat to India A

MUSCAT: Hosts Oman made a tame exit from the ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup following a six-wicket defeat to India A in their final Group B match at the Oman Cricket Academy ground on Wednesday.

The loss marked Oman’s third consecutive defeat in the tournament, while India A topped the group with a perfect record, securing a semi-final spot against Afghanistan A.

 Chasing a modest target of 141, India A's openers, Abhishek Sharma and Abhijeet Rawat, provided a solid foundation, reaching 35 in just four overs. Jay Odedra gave Oman their first breakthrough, dismissing Rawat for 8, caught by Sufyan Mehmood.

In the very next over, Karan Sonavale struck, removing Sharma, who was caught by Samay Shrivastav, leaving India at 43/2.

India’s skipper Tilak Varma and Ayush Badoni then took control, adding 55 by the end of the powerplay. Varma’s aggression was on display early, hitting a six and a four in his first ten balls, including a towering straight six off Odedra and a well-placed cover drive. Inspired by Varma, Badoni launched an assault in the 10th over, scoring 24 off Shrivastav, which included two sixes and three boundaries.

Badoni reached his half-century off just 25 balls before falling 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 one more wicket as Sufyan Mehmood removed Nehal Wadhera cheaply, but it was too late as Ramandeep Singh sealed India’s win 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 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 hard to come by.

Nadeem anchored the innings with a well-constructed 41 off 49 balls, while Hammad Mirza provided late fireworks, smashing 28 not out off 15 balls, including two sixes and a boundary, lifting Oman to a total of 140/5.

India A’s bowlers rotated effectively, with eight bowlers used, and five taking a wicket each. Aaqib Khan, Rasikh Salam, Nishant Sandhu, Ramandeep Singh, and Sai Kishore all contributed to restricting Oman’s batting.

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,