Friday 19 / April / 2024
Muscat: Buoyed by a win against full-strength United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the third and final practice game at the ICC Academy in Dubai on Monday, Oman national coach and Chief Development Officer Duleep Mendis signalled that his wards are ready for the forthcoming ICC World Cricket League (WCL) Division 4.
Oman will be opening their campaign in the WCL Division 4 against Jersey on October 29, a team against whom Oman had lost in the final of the WCL Division 5 in Jersey recently.
The tournament, which is being held in Los Angeles from October 29 to November 5, will also feature United States, Bermuda, Denmark and Italy.
"We wanted to test our readiness for the tournament and hence had arranged practice matches against the United Arab Emirates, who play in Division 2," said Mendis soon after returning from Dubai on Tuesday.
"We are thankful to UAE for fielding full-strength team in all the practice games and having beaten them in the third and final match proved more of a confidence-booster ahead of the all-important trip to Los Angeles," added Mendis.
The Sultanate squad are scheduled to leave for the U.S. in the early hours of October 22.
"Going early was an idea to counter the jet lag and also get useful practice and acclimatisation before we play the first game," said the coach.
"The boys are mentally and physically fit and we will be flying with the same 14 members (who toured the UAE) plus Twinkal Bhandari (who is not part of the team)," added Mendis.
"Until then the boys will only have light training in the gymnasium and brief sessions at the swimming pool."
On batting worries (only Zeeshan Maqsood excelled with bat and ball) which was evident in the three practice games against the UAE, Mendis conceded that there were areas where the team has to work more.
"There were indeed grey areas in our batting. Even in the match that we won, I would have been satisfied had some of the batsmen converted the 40s into big scores. I hope they will do well. There were also fielding lapses and this is where we lost the first game, which looked very much in our kitty," said Mendis.
"Nevertheless the camp at ICC Academy has helped us a lot and I am hopeful that the team will do well in Division 4."
Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan said nothing is going to be easy in Division 4.
"All the teams in fray are strong and have been improving by leaps and bounds. We must work hard to realise our dreams to make Division 3," said Mendis, assuring that the boys are ready to give in their best.
Confident captain
Meanwhile, skipper Ajay Lalcheta said there were lots of positives from the UAE tour and the boys are raring to go.
"The training and practice matches at the ICC Academy were fruitful and the win against UAE on Monday has boosted our morale. Now we have gained in confidence and are mentally prepared for the tournament in Los Angeles," said Lalcheta.
"I am confident that we can perform well and we know most of the teams in fray and we have also played them (the likes of Bermuda, Denmark, Italy and U.S.) before," he said.
On the first game against Jersey, Lalcheta said: "In Division 5, we have played them twice and have beaten them once. We have studied their game well and also studied our mistakes from the defeat against them in the Division 4 final."
Knowing well that a winning start would give them momentum, Lalcheta hoped that Oman opens campaign on a positive note.
"Opening matches are always crucial, and we want to make a winning start," signed off the captain.
Oman squad: Ajay Lalcheta (c), Aamir Ali, Khawar Ali, Munis Ansari, Swapnil Khadye, Mehran Khan, Zeeshan Maqsood, Sufyan Mehmood, Mohammad Nadeem, Arun Poulose, Rajesh Ranpura, Zeeshan Siddiqui, Jatinder Singh and Vaibhav Wategaonkar. Stand-bye: Twinkal Bhandari. Coach: Duleep Mendis. Assistant coach: Mazhar Salim. Bowling coach: Rumesh Ratnayake. Fielding coach: Ruwan Kalpage.
Fixtures: October 29: Bermuda v United States; Denmark v Italy; Jersey v Oman; October 30: Bermuda v Oman; Denmark v Jersey; Italy v United States; November 1: Bermuda v Denmark; Italy v Jersey; Oman v United States; November 2: Bermuda v Jersey; Denmark v United States; Italy v Oman; November 4: Bermuda v Italy; Denmark v Oman; Jersey v United States; November 5: 5th v 6th Playoff; 3rd v 4th Playoff; Final
