5 Oman players to watch out for in T20 World Cup 2024

Oman will be making its third appearance in a T20 World Cup when they take the field in their opening match of T20 World Cup 2024 against Namibia on June  They have played the first round of 2016 and 2021 T20 World Cups before but could not go past the initial stage. In 2021 T20 World Cup, they were the co-hosts along with UAE.

They qualified for the T20 World Cup 2024 by winning all the five matches in the 2023 Asia qualifiers, which included a thrilling Super Over win over hosts Nepal in the final. In the T20 World Cup 2024, they will be led by a new captain Aqib Ilyas, and will be aiming to create history here. They have been slotted in Group B alongside England, Australia, Namibia, and Scotland.

Oman have a bunch of talented players and T20 cricket provides them the best opportunity to upset a few teams. Let's have a look at some of their players who will be the ones to watch out for.

Five Oman players to watch out for in T20 World Cup 2024

1. Zeeshan Maqsood

T20I Career: Matches 65, Runs 1295, Bat Avg. 28.77, SR. 121.93, Wkts 48, Bowl Avg. 22.14, ER. 6.54

Zeeshan Maqsood is one of the most experienced players in this squad. He led Oman for a long time but was replaced by Aqib Ilyas recently. Maqsood is Oman's highest run-scorer and the only batter in the team to score a T20I century. He has played in both the T20 World Cups before and this will be his third T20 World Cup appearance. The left-hander is likely to bat in the top order and with no burden of captaincy now, he is likely to bat with freedom. Adding to his explosive batting style, he is also a useful left-arm spinner and can be dangerous if pitches offer some turn.

2. Aqib Ilyas

T20I Career: Matches 48, Runs 1176, Bat Avg. 29.40, SR. 125.50, Wkts 37, Bowl Avg. 15.54, ER. 5.92 

Aqib Ilyas has been chosen as Oman's captain for this campaign. He will have a huge responsibility on his shoulders. Ilyas is a top order batter and has been a consistent run-scorer for Oman over the years. Interestingly, he is a useful bowler as well and bowls both offspin and legspin. Ilyas had a great tournament in ACC Men's Premier Cup 2024 which was played a month ago, where he scored 175 runs at an average of 43.75. The 31-year-old emerged as the highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 12 wickets in 5 games at an average of 9.33.

3. Kashyap Prajapati

T20I Career: Matches 41, Runs 812, Bat Avg. 23.20, SR. 111.08

Prajapati is an opening batter and is an experienced batter in this squad. His role in the T20 World Cup 2024 will be crucial. He has the ability to play a long innings and is also known to play spin well. He scored 105 runs in 6 matches in ACC Men's Premier Cup 2024, in which Oman made it to the final. In the absence of Jatinder Singh in the 15-member squad, Oman are likely to rely heavily on Kashyap Prajapati to deliver the goods. If the pitches are slow, the 28-year-old will be a useful player for the team.

4. Bilal Khan

T20I Career: Matches 75, Wkts 106, Bowl Avg. 17.07, ER. 6.68

The 37-year-old fast bowler is the spearhead of this bowling attack. Bilal Khan swings the new ball and is also a specialist death bowler for Oman. He has an excellent yorker which makes him a lethal bowler in this line-up. The left-arm quick picked up 5 wickets in 3 matches in 2021 T20 World Cup at an economy rate of just 4.45. In ACC Men's Premier Cup 2024, Bilal picked up 10 wickets in 6 matches and played a vital role in Oman's road to the final. He was Oman's second highest wicket-taker of the tournament after Aqib Ilyas. He is Oman's highest wicket-taker in T20Is.

5. Fayyaz Butt

T20I Career: Matches 43, Wkts 45, Bowl Avg. 23.93, ER. 7.77

Fayyaz Butt is likely to play a crucial role for Oman in the upcoming edition of T20 World Cup. Fayyaz picked up 5 wickets in 6 matches in In ACC Men's Premier Cup 2024. He is usually a first change bowler and alongwith Bilal Khan and Kaleemullah, will be vital in this bowling attack. The 30-year-old right arm quick has a good record in T20I cricket. In the T20 World Cup Asia qualifiers played last year, he picked up 4 wickets in 4 matches. Butt has also represented Pakistan in 2010 Under-19 World Cup.

Also read: Five Namibia players to watch out for in T20 World Cup 2024

Oman squad for T20 World Cup 2024

Aqib Ilyas (C), Zeeshan Maqsood, Kashyap Prajapati, Pratik Athavale (wk), Ayaan Khan, Shoaib Khan, Mohammad Nadeem, Naseem Khushi (wk), Mehran Khan, Bilal Khan, Rafiullah, Kaleemullah, Fayyaz Butt, Shakeel Ahmad, Khalid Kail.

Reserves: Jatinder Singh, Samay Shrivastava, Sufyan Mehmood, Jay Odedra

For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram and YouTube.