That collapse in the end was very disappointing, asserts Assad Vala

T20 World Cup debutants Papua New Guinea got off to the worst start possible against hosts Oman but later skipper Assad Vala and Charles Amini salvaged the situation by helping them to 129/9 in 20 overs. At one point, PNG were 102/4 but after Vala's dismissal, the side couldn't get going. Oman Captain Zeeshan Maqsood returned bowling figures of 4-20 as he sent back Norman Vanua, Sese Bau and Kiplin Doriga in the space of five deliveries and later took one more.

"It wasn't a good start, and losing two wickets for no runs wasn't great. It was disappointing to collapse after the partnership and we couldn't pick up wickets either, so they deserved the win. 160 was par and it would have given us a chance to win. The middle-order could have given us a good chance but we didn't do well, and they picked up crucial wickets at the time," Vala said in the post-match presentation.

PNG captain Assad Vala, who made 56 off 43 balls, and Charles Amini, who smashed 37, hit back with an attacking third-wicket partnership of 81 after the initial collapse but Mohammad Nadeem ran out the left-handed Amini with a direct throw at the non-striker's end to break the stand and that opened the door for Maqsood.

"They were batting very well when I got the wickets. And because we got the wickets, they couldn't put on a big total. I just try to keep it tight and not give away loose balls. We knew the wicket was playing very well, we needed to make sure we didn't give away loose balls and easy boundaries," Maqsood said.

"We know these conditions well, any score around 120-140 can be chased well, the wicket was playing well, the ball was coming on nicely and the openers batted really well," the Oman captain concluded.