Sufyan Mehmood has made history as the first Omani captain to lead an all-Omani team to qualify for the 20th Asian Games in Japan. This achievement came after Oman secured their spot with a second straight win in the Asian Games Men's Qualifier held in Singapore.

After kicking off their campaign with a victory against the host nation, Singapore, Oman followed up with a solid 20-run win over Bahrain at the Singapore National Cricket Ground on Wednesday, sealing their qualification.

In an interview with Oman Observer, the 34-year-old captain praised his team's performance, especially noting that 13 players were making their debut. Sufyan, a left-handed batter, emphasized how crucial it was for the team to arrive in Singapore early to acclimatize to the local conditions, which played a key role in their strong start to the tournament.

“We had 13 debutants in the team, I am proud of our players who showed no stage-fear in clinching two back-to-back wins against hosts Singapore and Bahrain,” Mehmood said.

The win against Bahrain was particularly meaningful for Sufyan, as he remained unbeaten on 40 runs during the match, especially after Bahrain had previously bested Oman in a series in Muscat. In addition to his batting, the medium pacer also took a wicket in the match, bringing his total to 17 T20I wickets over the past year. He now shares the record for the most T20I wickets for Oman during this timeframe with Jiten Ramanandi.