"Just Another Game": Oman Captain Aqib Ilyas On Facing Australia In T20 World Cup

Oman captain Aqib Ilyas, boosted by the performance in the opening-game tie against Namibia, has urged his team not to be overawed by Australian names on the opposition squad sheet when they face Aussies in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup in Barbados. In a pre-match press conference, Ilyas insisted that Oman treat the match as any other and not be intimidated by Australia, who are aiming to become the first team to win global trophies in all three formats following their World Test Championship (WTC) and ODI World Cup victories last year.

Ilyas said it is a tactic to convince Oman that they could compete with a great team and feels his team can attack Australia with spin. While praising the "Australian mindset" and their track record of success at major events, Oman captain, who bowls both leg- and off-spin, believes a combination of the island's unpredictable wet-season squalls and uncertainty over a surprisingly dry pitch block will work in their favour.

"Once you step into the field, there is no big name, there is no one bigger than you at the field. It's another game for us and we don't think that we are going to play someone extraordinary," Ilyas said in a pre-match presentation.

"I don't have to go and tell them as a captain that you are going to face [Mitchell] Starc. Already it comes to your mind when you are playing some top bowlers or top cricketers. So it's been very positive from the management [and] also from the coach, he said we don't even take their names - it's just a team that has come and still they are at the same level what we are doing. We have also qualified, they have also qualified, one team is going to be the champion so it doesn't make much difference, though we respect them [and] what they have