India continued their flawless campaign in Asia Cup as they defeated Oman by 21 runs in their third and final group match at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, on Friday.
Chasing a daunting 189-run target, Oman could accumulate 167 in their allotted 20 overs despite losing only four wickets.
Their opening pair of skipper Jatinder Singh and Kaleem scripted a decent start to the pursuit by putting together 56 runs.
Kuldeep Yadav drew the much-needed breakthrough for India in the ninth over by bowling Singh, who made a cautious 32 off 33 deliveries.
Kaleem was then joined by Mirza in the middle, and the duo batted valiantly against a strong Indian bowling attack to add 93 runs for the second wicket.
All-rounder Harshit Rana eventually broke the threatening partnership in the 18th over when he got Kaleem caught at deep fine leg by Hardik Pandya.
Kaleem remained the top-scorer for Oman with a 46-ball 64, studded with seven fours and two sixes.
Mirza followed suit in the next over when he handed a straightforward catch to substitute fielder Rinku Singh off Hardik Pandya and walked back after scoring 51 off 33 deliveries, featuring five fours and two sixes.
With his dismissal, the required equation soared to 35 required off seven deliveries and Oman could score 13 and thus fell short despite a valiant effort.
For India, Kuldeep, Harshit, Pandya and Arshdeep Singh picked up one wicket apiece.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav’s decision to bat first paid dividends as his team’s batting unit yielded 188/8 in 20 overs.
The 2016 champions, however, got off to a contrasting start to their innings, as vice-captain Shubman Gill (five) was cleaned up by Shah Faisal in the second over with just six runs on the board.
Following the early setback, Samson, promoted up the order, joined Abhishek Sharma for a quickfire 66-run partnership for the second wicket, which culminated with the opener’s dismissal in the eighth over.
Sharma smashed five fours and two sixes on his way to a 15-ball 38.
India lost another wicket in the eighth over as Hardik Pandya (one) got run out by Jiten Ramanandi, who managed to deflect the ball onto the stumps during his follow-through.
Samson then knitted an important 45-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Axar Patel, who contributed with a 13-ball 26 before falling victim to Aamir Kaleem in the 12th over.
Kaleem struck again in his next over, dismissing Shivam Dube (five), resulting in India slipping to 130/5 in 13.2 overs.
Meanwhile, Samson, supported by Tilak Varma, ensured to keep the momentum in India’s favour as the duo added 41 runs for the sixth wicket before both fell in successive overs.
Samson remained the top-scorer for India with 56 off 45 deliveries, studded with three sixes and as many fours, while Varma made an 18-ball 29 with the help of two sixes and a four.
Lower-order batter Harshit Rana added valuable runs for India in the final over with an unbeaten 13 off just eight deliveries.
For Oman, Faisal, Kaleem and Ramanandi picked up two wickets each.
For the unversed, India, who had already sealed Super Four qualification, next face arch-rivals Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday.
