News from Colombo – Sikandar Raza won the toss and, almost without a pause, told the match referee he fancied a chase. “We’ve seen a bit of dew this week, so we’ll bowl first,” he explained, a simple enough call at the SSC.
The big Zimbabwean headline is the return of Blessing Muzarabani, recovered from the side strain that kept him out of November’s tri-series in Pakistan. He joins Richard Ngarava and Brad Evans in a seam group that carried plenty of bite during the African qualifiers. Graeme Cremer, whose international comeback last November ended a seven-year T20I gap, keeps his spot too.
“Blessing gives us bounce and that little extra pace,” batting coach Stuart Matsikenyeri said on the eve of the game. “He’s looked sharp in the nets – touch wood that holds up.”
Zimbabwe are back at the men’s T20 World Cup after missing the 2024 edition. They came through the African route alongside Namibia, opener Brian Bennett topping the run charts and Evans plus Ngarava among the wickets. Confidence is higher than it was two years ago, but the group know they need early points in a section that also features Australia and Pakistan.
Oman, for their part, lean on tournament nous. This is their fourth appearance (2016, 2021, 2024 the others) and they have spent the last month in Sri Lanka playing a short tri-series and four warm-ups. They hand a cap to 44-year-old Aamir Kaleem – the oldest man in this tournament – after a late injury ruled out seamer Hasnain Shah. “Age is only a number,” skipper Jatinder Singh smiled. “Aamir bowls his overs on the spot and still hits a long ball.”
Pitches in Colombo have offered gentle turn plus decent carry under lights, so a first-innings score of 160 already feels competitive. Yet Raza’s hunch is that a fresh surface and humid air will keep his seamers interested.
Teams
Oman: Jatinder Singh (capt), Aamir Kaleem, Hammad Mirza, Wasim Ali, Karan Sonavale, Jiten Ramanandi, Vinayak Shukla (wk), Sufyan Mehmood, Nadeem Khan, Shah Faisal, Shakeel Ahmad.
Zimbabwe: Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Dion Myers, Brendan Taylor (wk), Sikandar Raza (capt), Ryan Burl, Tashinga Musekiwa, Brad Evans, Wellington Masakadza, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani.
