The weather denied a thrilling contest between Oman and Afghanistan in their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 warm-up match on Wednesday at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad.

The match had been delayed due to rain before Oman lit up the stadium as they posted 154 for three from their 20 overs, with captain Aqib Ilyas top scoring.

That was where the game ended, however, with the rain stopping Afghanistan from beginning their reply as the match was abandoned.

Aqib Ilyas’ 66 not out was the highlight of a soggy meeting between Oman and Afghanistan which was abandoned after only Oman had batted.

Oman got off to a fast start having been put into bat, crashing 35 runs of the first four overs before Pratik Athavale departed for 15 attempting one pull shot too many as he was dismissed by Azmatullah Omarzai.

That brought Aqib Ilyas to the crease and there he stayed until the end of Oman’s innings.

He first put on a 62-run partnership with Kashyap Prajapati who built his runs steadily as Aqib led the scoring.

A mix-up saw both batters at the same end with Kashyap easily run out by Rashid Khan for 35.

Zeeshan Maqsood was keen to add to his 45 made against Papua New Guinea on Monday, hitting a four off his third ball.

But Aqib’s impactful scoring ensured he ended as his side’s top scorer this time out, bringing up his 50 off 40 balls as Zeeshan was dismissed lbw by Naveen-ul-Haq with the final ball of the innings for 35.

Aqib’s 66 came off 48 ball withs seven fours and three sixes before the covers came on and the rain called an early end to proceedings in the only warm-up match of the day.

Scores in brief

Afghanistan v Oman – Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad

Oman 154/3 in 20.0 overs (Aqib Ilyas 66 not out, Zeeshan Maqsood 35; Azmatullah Omarzai 1/23, Naveen-Ul-Haq 1/26)

Result: Match abandoned

Afghanistan’s second warm up match will be on Friday against Scotland at the same venue.

Broadcasting news!

Ariana Television Network (ATN) announced last week that it has secured the rights to broadcast this year’s T20 World Cup in Afghanistan.

News, updates and information on the event will be published regularly on Ariana News website and digital platforms so be sure to stay tuned.

As the teams gather for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the USA and Caribbean, get ready to witness some history in the making.

With the format known for its record-breaking feats, let’s take a look at some of the records that could be broken in this edition of the tournament.

Virat Kohli has scored 103 fours in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and is just behind Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardena’s 111 fours. Kohli already holds the record for the highest run tally in the tournament, and the chase master will aim to add another accolade to his name in this edition.

Rohit Sharma who is fourth on the list with 91 fours will also look to get to the top spot as will David Warner, who has 86 fours to his name now.

Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 53-ball 82* to help India secure an opening victory against Pakistan in their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 encounter.

Fastest Hundred (by balls)

With 47- and 50-ball centuries, Chis Gayle currently holds the top two spots for the fastest century in the Men’s T20 World Cup. With Nepal’s Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton setting the fastest overall T20 century at just 33 balls this year, this record could very well be under threat. With the expanded teams in this edition and the high strike-rates witnessed already this year, expect this record to be broken in this edition.

Most catches by a fielder

AB de Villiers currently sits at the top of the table for most catches as a fielder in the Men’s T20 World Cup with 23 catches to his name. David Warner is next on the list with 21 catches.

The Australian will look to get this record in his name as he gears up to play another T20 World Cup. Rohit Sharma and Glenn Maxwell are also in the running for the pole position as they both are joint-fourth in the list with 16 catches each.

First team to win all ICC Trophies at the same time

Pat Cummins led Australia to history last year when they won the ICC Test Championship and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in 2023.

In the Caribbean this year they have the opportunity to become the first team in history to hold the ICC Trophies in all three formats of the game at the same time if they manage to win the 2024 T20 World Cup.

In addition to this, Australia are also the defending champions in the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup, the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup and the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup as well.

Australia lift the World Cup for a record sixth occasion | CWC23

Australia chased down the India total by the 43rd over mark.

Most Runs in a single edition of the tournament

With the total number of teams expanding from 16 to a record 20 in this edition of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, teams have the potential to play up to nine matches in the tournament.

With this increase in matches, one can expect the record of total runs accumulated in a single edition to be challenged. Currently, the record belongs to Virat Kohli who scored 319 runs in 6 matches in the 2014 edition of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

Broadcasting news!

Ariana Television Network (ATN) announced last week that it has secured the rights to broadcast this year’s T20 World Cup in Afghanistan.

News, updates and information on the event will be published regularly on Ariana News website and digital platforms so be sure to stay tuned.

Canada and Nepal kicked off the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 warm-up action at the Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Dallas on Monday, which saw Canada steamroll their way to a 63-run victory over Nepal.

After being put in to bat first, Canada lit up the first innings with great ball striking on display as they smashed away at 9.15 runs per over.

Despite struggling at 135/7 in the 18th over, Canada finished strong by scoring 55 runs in the last three overs.

In contrast, Nepal found it difficult to keep up with the required run rate of 9.2 in their chase of 184.

Canada will be playing the Netherlands on 31 May in their next warm-up match in Dallas, meanwhile, Nepal will be going head-to-head with co-hosts USA at the same ground on 30 May.

In the other warm-up fixtures on Monday, Oman defeated Papua New Guinea by three wickets and Namibia registered a five-wicket triumph over Uganda.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 warm-up match fixtures started Monday, May 27 and will run through until June 1. These matches will be played in the US and in Trinidad and Tobago.

The venues hosting the 16 warm-up matches ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 include Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Texas, Broward County Stadium in Florida, Queen’s Park Oval and Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad and Tobago.

A total of 17 teams play the warm-up games.

These warm-up fixtures will be 20 overs per side and will not have international T20 status, allowing teams to field all members of their 15-player squad.

Afghanistan will play their first warm up match against Oman at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad and Tobago.

The team’s second warm up match will be played against Scotland on Friday at the same venue.

Warm up matches are as follows:

Tuesday 28 May

Sri Lanka v Netherlands, Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida 10h30
Bangladesh v USA, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 10h30
Australia v Namibia, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 19h00

Wednesday 29 May

South Africa intra-squad, Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida 10h30
Afghanistan v Oman, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 13h00

Thursday 30 May

Nepal v USA, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 10h30
Scotland v Uganda, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago 10h30
Netherlands v Canada, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 15h00
Namibia v Papua New Guinea, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago 15h00
West Indies v Australia, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 19h00

Friday 31 May

Ireland v Sri Lanka, Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida 10h30
Scotland v Afghanistan, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 10h30

Saturday 1 June

Bangladesh v India, Venue TBC USA