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The chairman of the Oman Cricket Board, Pankaj Khimji told one of the reliable sources that the country almost had to say bye to the T20 World Cup after the deadly storm ripped apart the gulf state taking a slight distinct part on Sunday.
Eleven people were killed and many got injured following the heavy winds as rain, heavy winds after the tropical storm led to a landslide in Oman.
The Chairman said to Reuters,
“We were so close to being virtually wiped out,” he told Reuters. We had the cyclone only a few nautical miles north. It made landfall there and it’s devastated that whole region and flooded the whole plain over there.
“Had this had happened over here in this area, I’d have said ‘Goodbye’ to the World Cup.”
Notably, the T20 World Cup was set to take place in India but after the COVID outbreak in the cricket-loving nation surpassed an extreme level, there was no other option but to move the event to Oman, UAE under the hosting rights of the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI).
Oman is fortunate not to lose the hosting rights, says Khimji:
Oman will host the six Group B matches at Al Amerat near Muscat, including three involving their own team. Cricket Chairman Khimji said they were “very fortunate” to have missed the worst of the storm.
'Very fortunate'
Oman faced losing cricket's Twenty20 World Cup due to Cyclone Shaheen https://t.co/TqUPlV30Ue pic.twitter.com/MM8GoPcKXS
— AJE Sport (@AJE_Sport) October 6, 2021
The country itself is ready to feature in the big event under the leadership of Zeeshan Maqsood. Khimji is hopeful that the team will make it to the Super 12 round.
It is pertinent to mention that the event will kick-start from Group Stage on 17th October whereas, the Super 12 round will begin from 24th October. Papua New Guinea will encounter Oman in the first game of Group Stage. On the other hand, West Indies will rival England to commence the Super 12 stage.
Also, see:
Unchanged Pakistan T20 World Cup squad to reach UAE on 15 October
