The second half of Wednesday’s double header in the T20 World Cup is likely to be laced with plenty of pressure as Ireland take on Oman in Dharamsala.
Both sides go into this match knowing defeat probably ends their hopes of qualifying before they have really got into the tournament. Ireland will be desperate to prove their worth in this format of the game while Oman will know this opportunity might not come around again for a while.
Ireland are pushing to be regulars among the elite and another big showing in this tournament will have them knocking on the door of the top table. They are a professional outfit who are really only associate by name and are expected to win this. They will expect to win this.
Oman can have a bit of a go here but their spin friendly attack has the potential to struggle in these conditions and that has to be a concern. While their qualification was a fairytale they could come down to earth with a serious bump in the next week or so but if they can put in three competitive performances then nobody can ask more than that.
Paul Stirling sat out the last warm up game for Ireland but he is fit to feature in this game and he’ll be straight in at the top of the order. That means Ireland’s only selection issue is whether to play the extra spinner or the extra seamer. The latter is likely to be the option.
The impression is that Oman will be unchanged from their last T20 international and with strength in depth a bit of an issue they will hope that all of their big players can hit the ground running and see them competitive at the very least.
This is the first time that these two sides have met in this format. The dew could be a factor in this match so you would think that Oman will be desperate to bowl first with their spinners and maybe Ireland will deny them that chance. They are a side who enjoy chasing after all.
I like the Oman story. It is positive for the game but most good stories have an unhappy ending eventually and I suspect their ending will come here. I just see Ireland being too good for the minnows here.
If this match was in Nagpur rather than Dharamsala the match might be more even but these are conditions which Ireland are likely to specialise in and I expect them to open their tournament with a significant sized win.
Back Ireland (-5.5 wickets/24.5 runs) to beat Oman for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
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