ABOUT THE MATCH
Oman will be eyeing their third straight win of the tournament when they take on the Netherlands. This eighth fixture of the Oman pentangular T20 international series 2019 will be played on October 9 at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground Oman Cricket (Ministry Turf 1) in Al Amarat.
Oman is having a good time in this series. They have won their first two matches and that too in quite a convincing manner to grab the top spot on the points table. They beat Hong Kong by seven wickets in their opening game before securing a 43-run win over Ireland last time out.
The Netherlands, on the other hand, have had a disappointing tournament so far. They are yet to register a win and have faced defeats in their first two encounters – against Ireland by six wickets and last time against Nepal by four wickets. It will be interesting to see whether the Dutch will crumble under pressure or bounce back to keep themselves afloat in the series.
PITCH AND CONDITIONS
There are absolutely no chances of rain and the sun will be out throughout. The temperature will be in the low 30s with the humidity in the 40s. The conditions will be more or less pleasant for playing cricket. All in all, an exciting uninterrupted game is in the offing.
The pitch has played a tad indifferent over the past few encounters. But the teams, batting second has had the advantage. Also, since it’s an afternoon affair, chasing should be the way forward as, under natural light, the ball may grip on the surface.
PROBABLE PLAYING XI OF Oman
Khawar Ali, Jatinder Singh, Aqib Ilyas, Zeeshan Maqsood (C), Amir Kaleem, Khurram Nawaz, Sandeep Goud, Suraj Kumar (wk), Mohammad Nadeem, Fayyaz Butt, Bilal Khan
PROBABLE PLAYING XI OF Netherlands
Tobias Visee, Max O’Dowd, Antonius Staal, Colin Ackermann, Pieter Seelaar (C), Roelof van der Merwe, Scott Edwards (wk), Shane Snater, Fred Klaasen, Paul van Meekeren, Brandon Glover
MATCH PREVIEW
Oman
- Oman looked good with the bat in both their matches and they will want the likes of Khawar Ali, Jatinder Singh, Zeeshan Maqsood and Aamir Kaleem to continue their good form.
- While skipper Zeeshan Maqsood top-scored for his side in the match against Hong Kong, Jatinder Singh, and Aamir Kaleem both scored in 40s last time out against Ireland to power their team to a match-winning total of 173.
- Khawar Ali is another key batsman in this line-up and the opener will look to give Oman a brisk start.
- Oman has been impressive with the ball as well. They restricted Hong Kong to just 96 in their first match and cleaned up Ireland for 130 in their previous match.
- Mohammad Nadeem has been the pick of the bowlers with five wickets and that too at a very healthy economy rate.
- Bilal Khan and Aamir Kaleem are also wicket-takers and they will be expected to choke the Dutch batsmen on Wednesday.
Netherlands
- The Netherlands was underwhelming with the bat in their last game against Nepal and they will be hoping for their big guns Max O’Dowd, Colin Ackermann, and Roelof van der Merwe to perform well on Wednesday.
- Max O’Dowd has scored the most runs for the team in this series with 81 runs in the two matches and so there will be plenty of expectations from him.
- Colin Ackermann, who has scores of 27 and 29, is another key figure at the top of the order.
- Roelof van der Merwe’s knock will be crucial in the middle order and he can also make an impact with his left-arm spin.
- The key men with the ball, however, will be Paul van Meekeren, Brandon Glover and Fred Klaassen.
- Brandon Glover did a good job last time picking up a wicket and conceding only seven runs off his two overs. Paceman Fred Klaassen will probably lead Netherlands’ bowling attack and will look to hurt Oman early on.
PROBABLE WINNING TEAM:
Oman and Netherlands have had contrasting results so far in this pentangular T20I series. The hosts (Oman) have the momentum with them and are favorites to win this match.
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