Oman cricket: 5 players to watch out for in Asia Cup 2016

Oman, having made it to ICC World T20 for the first time, will come all guns blazing in the Asia Cup qualifier before the tournament.

ICC World T20 2016 is knocking at the door. Barring major cricket nations, there will be the associate nations who will look to steal the limelight with their surprising performances. There have been upsets and shocks in the marquee tournament before, and it will certainly not be the last. Many teams have performed above average to grab attention of cricket enthusiasts from around the globe. Not only do the teams grab eyeballs, but individuals from lesser sides also make headlines by pulling off superlative exploits against the top bracket. Oman, having made it to ICC World T20 for the first time, will come all guns blazing in the Asia Cup qualifier before the tournament. Before the Asia Cup qualifiers, Paulami Chakraborty lists five Oman cricketers to watch out for.

1. Adnan Ilyas: Middle-order batsman Ilyas is the backbone of Oman’s batting line-up. He has been among runs despite the toppling top-order, and has delivered single-handed efforts to score necessary runs and help his side put up good runs on the board. In the current season Iyas has scored 163 T20I runs — the most among Omani cricketers. His best was 49 against Hong Kong after a top-order collapse.

2. Bilal Khan: Bilal is easily Oman’s best T20I bowler. With 10 wickets from 6 matches at 6.49 runs an over in the current season makes him stand out. Bilal registered his best figures against Hong Kong with 4 for 20 from 3.5 overs. He had another memorable performance, also against Hong Kong, taking 3 for 29 and helping Oman win by 6 wickets.

3. Zeeshan Maqsood: A hard-hitting opener, Maqsood has scored 110 runs in the format playing 5 matches. The numbers are not excellent, but he has got them at a strike rate of 152.8. Additionally, his left-arm spin has fetched 7 wickets from 5 matches. As second-highest run-scorer and wicket-taker for Oman, Maqsood is perhaps the most crucial cog of the line-up.

4. Aamir Kaleem: Apart from Ilyas, Kaleem is the other name that makes the Oman middle-order strong. Kaleem, in 2015-16, has played 4 T20Is and scored 107 (e he was dismissed twice, which takes his average to 53.50) runs at a strike rate of 128.9 and with two scores in excess of 40.

5. Mehran Khan: With his ability to switch between seam and off-breaks at will, Mehran adds unique variation to the Oman attack. He can also hit hefty blows down the innings. Mehran has 6 wickets this season. His best of the span was 3 for 30 against Afghanistan when he removed players like Usman Ghani and Samiullah Shenwari.

(Paulami Chakraborty, a singer, dancer, artist, and photographer, loves the madness of cricket and writes about the game. She can be followed on Twitter at @Polotwitts)

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