Asia Cup: Super 4s secured, India looks to stretch batting in Oman clash

DUBAI: Already through to the Super 4s, India will look to use Friday’s group-stage clash against Oman in Abu Dhabi as an opportunity to give their batters valuable time in the middle ahead of the much-anticipated rematch with Pakistan on Sunday.

So far, the Suryakumar Yadav-led side has been forced into two lopsided low-scoring chases, which has left much of the batting order untested. Abhishek Sharma has provided a couple of brisk starts but Shubman Gill will want to bat deeper into the innings. Suryakumar himself looked fluent against Pakistan, but there will be particular interest in how Tilak Varma handles extended time in the middle. The likes of Hardik Pandya, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube and Axar Patel would also benefit from a solid hit before India faces a demanding stretch of fixtures, with four matches potentially crammed into seven days if they reach the final.

For Oman, the contest is a daunting one. Their batting has faltered badly so far, producing totals of 67 and 130 in defeats to Pakistan and the UAE. Not a single batter has crossed 30, with Hammad Mirza’s 27 against Pakistan and Aryan Bisht’s 24 against the UAE being the highest returns.

India head coach Gautam Gambhir is unlikely to tinker much with the line-up, though Jasprit Bumrah might be rested as a precaution ahead of the Super 4s. The pacer, however, has bowled sparingly and may not be too keen on sitting out. A rotation would open the door for Arshdeep Singh or even Harshit Rana to get a game.

The Sheikh Zayed Stadium will host its only India game of the tournament, with the team adopting an “in-and-out” approach to avoid long travel and fatigue. After a week dominated by controversy over handshakes with Pakistan, this fixture offers India a welcome chance to concentrate solely on cricket and fine-tune their batting before the bigger challenges ahead.