Zimbabwe put in an all-round performance first with the ball and then with the bat as they brushed aside Oman at Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo by 8 wickets with 39 balls to spare and climbs to the top of the points table. Zimbabwe were switched on from the word go and brushed Oman aside with a dominant bowling display by their paces. They put Oman into bat first and the three pacers Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava and Brad Evans picked up 3 wickets apiece to skittle Oman out for 103 in 19.5 overs.
In reply, Brian Bennett’s unbeaten 48 and starts from Marumani and Brendan Taylor alongside the winning runs hit by Sikandar Raza made sure that Zimbabwe gets over the line easily in the 14th over and did their Net Run Rate a world of good. Oman had a day to forget and they will look to put it behind them and come back stronger in future games.
All-Round bowling display led by Blessing Muzarabani keeps Oman down to 103 in 19.5 overs
Put into bat first, Aamir Kaleem and captain Jatinder Singh came out to bat for Oman while Richard Ngarava had ball in hand for Zimbabwe. Oman got off to the worst possible start as the opening duo added 7 runs in 7 balls before Jatinder was cleaned by Blessing Muzarabani for 5 off 5 balls with one boundary to his name. Hammad Mirza came out to bat next. Mirza did not last long as just one run was added to the score before Mirza fell for a duck to Ngarava. Karan Sonavale came out to bat next.
Kaleem and Sonavale added 8 runs to the score before Kaleem fell for 5 off 7 balls with one four to his name to Muzarabani. Wasim Ali came out to bat next. Just one run was added to the tally before Karan fell for a duck to Muzarabani who had two in the over as Oman were 17/4 in 4 overs. Oman crawled their way to 24/4 in 6 overs of powerplay. Sufyan Mehmood came out to bat as well.
Sikandar Raza the captain came onto the attack and he struck in his first over. Just 10 runs were added to the tally before Wasim fell for 3 off 8 balls cleaned up by Raza as Oman were reeling at 27/5 in 7 overs. Vinayak Shukla the keeper batter came out to bat next. Mehmood and Shukla tried to conjure a partnership and took the score to 38/5 in 10 overs.
They accelerated a little post the powerplay and were severe on Brian Bennett the bowler. The duo put on a useful 42-run stand for the 6th wicket before Shukla fell for 28 off 21 balls with 4 fours to his name to Ngarava. Jiten Ramanandi came out to bat next. Ngarava struck again in the same over. Just 2 runs were added to the tally before Ramanandi fell for 1 off 3 balls to Ngarava. Nadeem Khan came to the middle next. Just 5 runs were added to the score before Mehmood fell for 25 off 39 balls with 2 fours to his name to Brad Evans. Shakeel Ahmed came to the crease next.
Nadeem added crucial runs with the tail to take Oman closer to the 100-run mark. The duo added 20 runs for the 9th wicket before Shakeel fell for 4 off 5 balls as he was cleaned up by Evans. Faisal Shah came out to bat next. He managed to hit a boundary as well. The duo added 7 runs for the final wicket before Nadeem fell for 20 off 18 balls with one four and one six to his name as Bennett pulled off a spectacular catch. Faisal Shah remained unbeaten on 5 off 2 balls with one four to his name. Oman were bowled out for 103 in 19.5 overs with 7 extras given by the fielding side.
Zimbabwe bowled really well with the pacers dominating proceedings. Blessing Muzarabani was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/16 in 4 overs. Richard Ngarava finished with 3/17 in 4 overs. Brad Evans finished with 3/18 in 3.5 overs. Sikandar Raza finished with 1/17 in 4 overs. Brian Bennett finished with 0/18 in 2 overs while Wellington Masakadza finished with 0/12 in 2 overs. The target for Zimbabwe was a mere 104 runs to start their campaign with the win.
Brian Bennett’s unbeaten 48 guides Zimbabwe over the line inside 14 overs
Chasing 104 for the win, Brian Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani came out to open the batting for Zimbabwe while Faisal Shah started the proceedings for Oman. Zimbabwe started quickly off the blocks as Marumani took the attack to the opposition while Bennett played second fiddle and settled in for the long haul. The duo put on 30 runs inside 3 overs before Marumani fell for 21 off 11 balls with 5 fours to his name to Sufyan Mehmood. Dion Myers came out to bat next.
Myers did not last long as Mehmood had two in the over getting rid of Myers for a silver duck as the Chevrons were 30/2 in 3.3 overs suddenly. Brendan Taylor came out to bat next. Taylor took time to get himself in while Bennett played his game as well. The duo started to stabilise things as the required rate was not a problem. South Africa were 43/2 in 6 overs at the end of the powerplay in a paltry chase.
The duo of Taylor and Bennett aced the chase in the middle phase of the game and did not allow Oman any breathing room whatsoever. Bennett looked fluent and Taylor did too. Taylor went at just over run a ball. As the innings wore on, Taylor developed an injury to his hamstring. The duo put on 68 runs for the third wicket and took the score to 98 in the 13th over when Taylor decided to go off and not aggravate himself as he scored 31 off 30 balls with 3 fours to his name as he was retired hurt.
Captain Sikandar Raza came out to bat and hit a boundary through covers and that was the game for them as Zimbabwe chased this down easily. Bennett was unbeaten on 48 off 36 balls with 7 fours to his name while Raza was unbeaten on 5 off 2 balls with one four to his name as the target was achieved in 13.3 overs. Just one extra given by Oman as Zimbabwe finished with 106/2.
Sufyan Mehmood was the pick of the bowlers for Oman with figures of 2/12 in 3 overs. Faisal Shah went for 13 in 2 overs. Shakeel Ahmed went for 27 in 2 overs. Nadeem Khan finished with 0/28 in 3 overs. Wasim Ali finished with 0/10 in 2 overs. Jiten Ramanandi bowled an over for 9 runs. Karan Sonavale bowled 3 balls for 6 runs. So, Zimbabwe wins this game easily by 8 wickets with 39 balls to spare. Blessing Muzarabani was adjudged the Player of the Match Award.
What Lies Ahead
So, a dominating win for Zimbabwe sets them up nicely and they have Australia and Ireland to come later in the tournament. Oman will next face Australia in a daunting task for them. All the matches in Group B is in Sri Lanka. More action to come in T20 WC 2026 as South Africa will take on Canada next from Ahmedabad in a Group D clash. South Africa should win easily.
Let’s see how this game pans out for all of us.
Also Read:Â ICC T20 WC 2026: Zimbabwe Restricts Oman To 103 With Brilliant Bowling Display