Australia powered past a nervy opening quarter to hand Oman a 39-run thrashing in Barbados on Wednesday. David Warner and Marcus Stoinis registered half-centuries to help set a target of 165 before their Asian rivals collapsed in the face of disciplined bowling with Stoinis scalping three.
Brief score: AUS 164/5 (20) [Stoinis 67*(36), Warner 56(51); Mehran 2/38(4)] defeat OMA 125/9 (20) [Ayaan 36(30), Mehran 27(16); Stoinis 3/19(3)] by 39 runs
Travis Head got Australia off to a trademark crackling start with a boundary on the second ball of the match but his charge did not last long as he departed in the third over. Skipper Mitchell Marsh and David Warner thereafter exercised caution on a sticky surface to tick the scoreboard along to 50/1 after eight overs. However, the former buckled under the pressure to hole out against Mehran Khan for a tame 21-ball 14 and Glenn Maxwell followed suit on the very next delivery, courtesy of an Aqib Ilyas blinder. The double blow put a firm brake on the scoring rate and the Kangaroos found themselves reeling at 80/3 after 14 overs when Marcus Stoinis decided to break the shackles. His first attempt to go big was aided by a huge slice of fortune with Ayaan Khan carrying the ball across the rope after an excellent grab but the Bison needed no second invitation as three more maximums followed in the over. Before long, the all-rounder had brought up a 28-ball half-century and Warner got to the mark from 44 balls three deliveries later. By the time Oman managed to snap the 102-run stand in the penultimate over, the damage had already been done and Australia posted a handsome total of 164/5 on the board.
In response, Mitchell Starc’s signature inswinger dispatched Pratik Athavale for a golden duck in the first over which set the tone for the rest of the run-chase. Two more scalps followed in the powerplay with Nathan Ellis as the beneficiaries, and the former struck again in the eighth over. With the scoring having essentially come to a standstill, Starc added to his tally soon after the halfway mark followed by Adam Zampa getting to the 300 mark in T20 cricket to leave the score reading 57/6 after 13 overs. Even though the match was already a lost cause, Ayaan and Meran showcased valiant fighting spirit to smash four maximums and help Oman avoid getting bowled out albeit they fell well short of the target.
Good win
perfect
Australia get its T20 World Cup campaign off to a perfect start.
#AUSvOMA pic.twitter.com/MuuihvHIiv— Aussies Army🏏🦘 (@AussiesArmy) June 6, 2024
Stoinis With bat – 67*(36)
Stoinis with ball – 3/19(3) pic.twitter.com/WiftsJxYQT— Muzamal Dhother🇵🇰 (@Sust_insaan) June 6, 2024
So many options
outstanding
An outstanding all-round performance by Marcus Stoinis👏
67 off 36 and then 3 wickets for the team just brilliant..— Anonymous Sam (@gullibledude) June 6, 2024
If not for Stoinis Oman would have had an opportunity to make a big upset..Nevertheless this is excellent cricket from them
— Yoke (@YokeshCR1) June 6, 2024
Have some respect
Have some respect for Oman, I dont like Stoinis being dismissive of the opposition “We spent some time in the middle” we need to encourage the growing nations for the sake of the game globally #AUSvOMA
— Adam Cornell 🔴⚫ (@MrCricketAust) June 6, 2024
Brilliant
Player of the match
Brilliant all round performance by Marcus Stoinis 67* runs just 36 balls 🔥
Marcus Stoinis with the bowl
4-0-3-19 #AUSvsOMAN | #T20WC2024 pic.twitter.com/EaLJvW4FfA— Sama Umair (@umair6723) June 6, 2024
It’s Stoinis day 😍
Go well boys🙌🏻🫶🏻— Devi 🤩 (@Devikarthik06) June 6, 2024
Not enough
Australia 🇦🇺 beat Oman 🇴🇲 by 39 runs.
Oman did offer tough resistance to 7 time World Champions Australia but that didn’t seem enough.
At one point of time, Australia innings was going nowhere at 50/3(8.3 overs). But David Warner and Marcus Stoinis rescued the Australian ship. pic.twitter.com/ykl2zdigtw— Udit K (@Merovaeous) June 6, 2024