Upheaval, exits and a reset: Oman return with a rebuilt World Cup squad

Snapshot

Oman's Red Brigade, having qualified comfortably for their fourth appearance in five editions, are now a familiar fixture at the T20 World Cup. Yet the team travelling to Sri Lanka bears little resemblance to the one that last took to the biggest stage, with veterans Shakeel Ahmed and Mohammad Nadeem the only two survivors from the 2024 World Cup squad. The wholesale changes following a pay dispute that came to a head at the T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup in 2024 left Oman tasked with an entirely unprecedented rebuilding project, but the new-look side has nonetheless begun to hit their straps under returning skipper Jatinder Singh, coming good at the combined Asia-EAP qualifier, where they finished second behind Nepal. Facing down four full members in Group B will doubtless be a stern test for a squad with limited experience at the highest level, and a measure of the Sultanate's resilience and bench strength as they look to bounce back from a tumultuous couple of years.

The squad, and what it tells us

Jatinder Singh (c), Vinayak Shukla (wk), Wasim Ali, Hammad Mirza (wk), Nadeem Khan, Karan Sonavale, Ashish Odedara, Mohammad Nadeem, Shakeel Ahmed, Shah Faisal, Sufyan Mehmood, Jay Odedra, Shafiq Jan, Jiten Ramanandi, Amir Kaleem, Hasnain Ali Shah (injured)

The extraordinary upheaval in the Omani camp some 16 months back has seen no less than 18 players make their debuts for the side since the last T20 World Cup, but a measure of consistency has returned to selection of late, suggesting the new team is beginning to gel. Oman are sticking with a similar squad to the one that won them qualification - a mix of returning veterans such as skipper Singh, Amir Kaleem and Sufyan Mehmood, and newer faces such as Vinayak Shukla, Jiten Ramanandi and Shafiq Jan.

Still the transformation of the side remains more a renewal than rejuvenation; with an average age of close to 34, Oman are once again the oldest squad at the tournament by some distance. It's notable that none of the youth team graduates to have debuted for the senior side in recent months made the plane - Aryan Bisht and Muhazir Raza the most prominent omissions there - suggesting a continued preference for experience over youth in major tournaments.

The front-line seam section nonetheless remains comparatively callow in terms of international experience - Jan, Ramanandi and Shah Faisal all recent debutants - and it's telling that the injury-forced replacement of seamer Hasnain Shah resulted in a recall for seasoned spin all-rounder Amir Kaleem rather than a like-for-like substitution. Seasoned and spin-heavy is a selection formula that's served Oman well in recent years though, and Singh will certainly have no shortage of slow-bowling options in Sri Lanka.

The road to the World Cup

The immediate unsettling effects of the 2024 purge appear to have worn off just in time for Oman, and after a string of eight consecutive defeats they've now lost only one of their last nine in full T20Is.

Spared having to run the gauntlet of Sub-regional qualifiers thanks to their 2024 T20 World Cup qualification, the new Red Brigade hit their stride at the perfect time. Aided by home conditions at the combined Asia-EAP Regional final last October they finished runners up to Nepal, ahead of all their rising Gulf rivals. They have made a veritable fortress of their home ground at Al-Amerat, conceding only one 150-plus score through the tournament and warm-ups. The 151 that Nepal made against them proved too much however, leaving unanswered questions regarding the batting unit's ability to post more substantial scores if required.

Since then a somewhat experimental team showed promise at the Asia Cup Rising Stars tournament in November, narrowly besting hosts UAE and showing commendable fight with the bat going down against the Shaheens and India A. Yet away wins have been few and far between, as have victories over full member sides. Their last win over a test-playing nation was won by a very different side against Ireland at home in 2019, and they have no easy assignments at this World Cup.

Last five T20Is: W-W-L-W-W

The way they play

The marked shift in Oman's strategy in recent years is mirrored in the transformation of Al Amerat - once a lively seamers' playground in the days when Kaleemullah, Fayyaz Butt and Bilal Khan ran in for the Reds, now a ripping spin fortress. There remain real questions about Oman's ability to win away from home (with only three away wins in the last two years - all in the Gulf) but the formula that got them to their fourth World Cup should translate well enough to Sri Lanka, and it's one they're likely to persist with.

With the bat that means go hard in the PowerPlay, retrench if necessary and fire again at the back end. Buccaneering skipper Jatinder Singh will look to provide the impetus at the top, with deputy Shukla charged with marshalling the lower order hitters at the death. With the ball these days Oman prefer to sit back and strangle with spin, attacking fields something of a rarity and seam at both ends even more so, even in the opening PowerPlay. With Shakeel Ahmed, Wasim Ali, relative youngster Nadeem Khan and now the wily Amir Kaleem on the roster (the latter three all capable bats) Singh will not lack for left arm spin options, and given the preponderance of right hand bats among their Group B opposition Oman's wealth of southpaw spin and seam options could well prove a substantial advantage. While ground fielding remains a notable weakness and their pace attack remains untested at the highest level, Oman will go in with a workable game plan and the skills to test their more illustrious opposition.

Who can bend a match in 10 balls

Oman don't lack for impact players with the bat, Singh himself at the top and Shukla especially of late at the back end, but their greatest strength is in the unspectacular, the likes of Shakeel or Khan quietly strangling the opposition as ten balls pass for seven or eight runs to arrest the momentum or turn the screw.

Scheduling

Oman will enjoy the advantage of immobility through the first phase, with both warm-ups and all their group games in Sri Lanka, switching between SSC and Kandy. The same is true of the other four sides in their group however, and Sri Lanka will have both home advantage and the crowd behind them in their second fixture Oman will likely feel more at home in Colombo and Kandy than will Zimbabwe, Ireland or Australia, however, and they'll have a sighter of Zimbabwe ahead of time, rather oddly playing them both in their second warm-up and opening match.

Banana peel fixture

With four full members in their group Oman will be underdogs in every game, but they may well have identified the opening match against Zimbabwe as their best bet at going home with a win, so they will have to hit the ground running.

What a good World Cup looks like

Super over defeat to Namibia denied them a win at the last edition, and it's now been almost a decade since Oman last recorded a victory over a test-playing nation at the T20 World Cup. Besting Ireland again would be less of a shock upset these day than it was back in 2016, and Oman will be looking to add at least one more full member scalp to their belt this time round. Progression to the next stage remains improbable if not implausible for an Oman side untried at the highest level, but going home winless again would be a disappointment.