Daijiworld Media Network - Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi, Sep 15: Junaid Siddique produced a stunning spell of 4 for 23 as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) clinched a convincing 42-run win over Oman in the Asia Cup 2025, registering their first victory of the tournament at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Monday.
Chasing a target of 173, Oman crumbled under pressure, folding for 130 in 18.4 overs, with Siddique dismantling their top order early. He removed both openers — Aamir Kaleem (2) and captain Jatinder Singh (20) — inside the powerplay, setting the tone for a dominant bowling performance.
Support came from Haider Ali I (2/22) and Muhammad Jawadullah (2/18) as Oman lost wickets in clusters. After slumping to 41/4, brief resistance from debutant Aryan Bisht (24) and Vinayak Shukla (20) couldn’t salvage their innings. This was Oman’s second consecutive loss, leaving them on the brink of elimination from Group A.
Earlier, UAE skipper Muhammad Waseem anchored the innings with a classy 69 off 54 balls, including six boundaries and three sixes, as UAE posted a solid 172/5 after being put in to bat. Waseem also reached a personal milestone, becoming the first UAE batter to surpass 3000 T20I runs and the fourth fastest globally to the mark by innings.
Waseem shared an 88-run opening stand with Alishan Sharafu, who struck a brisk 51 off 38 balls before falling to Jiten Ramanandi. Late cameos from Mohammad Zuhaib Khan (21 off 13) and Harshit Kaushik (19 off 8)* boosted the total, with Kaushik finishing with two sixes in the final overs.
For Oman, only Ramanandi (2/24) impressed with the ball, while the rest of the attack struggled to contain the run flow.
With this win, UAE bounced back from their opening defeat against India and kept their semi-final hopes alive, while Oman now face a must-win scenario in their next outing.
Brief Scores:
• UAE: 172/5 in 20 overs (Waseem 69, Sharafu 51; Ramanandi 2/24)
• Oman: 130 all out in 18.4 overs (Aryan Bisht 24, Jatinder Singh 20; Siddique 4/23)
• Result: UAE won by 42 runs