T20 World Cup: Papua New Guinea Support Staff Gets Emotional During The National Anthem

In the first match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, Oman and Papua New Guinea are facing off against each other. In the group B match of the first round, Oman captain Zeeshan Maqsood won the toss and elected to bowl first against Papua New Guinea in the 1st match of the T20 World Cup 2021. This match is being played at Al Amerat Cricket Ground, Al Amerat.

When the national anthems were being played of both the nations, PNG support staff got visibly emotional and had tears in their eyes. This is due to the fact that PNG's journey to play in their first ICC tournament has been tough & inspiring. Papua New Guinea (PNG) became the first team to qualify for the ICC T20 World Cup qualifiers in 2019 after missing out on qualifying for the T20 World 2 very closely.

It was not easy for the team of Papua New Guinea to reach here. The country is currently going through the worst phase of Covid-19, in which some players have even lost their family members. After being away from international cricket for almost 2 years, the challenge in front of the team now is to gain momentum. However, the support staff had united day and night to take the team here. Before the tournament, the team had to face defeat in 12 consecutive matches.

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However, while writing the piece, Oman is at 88/0 in 10 overs, chasing a target of 130 set by PNG. Oman has been on a roll coming into this tournament defeating teams bigger than them in status. Aqib Aliyas & Jatinder Singh are at the crease at 42*(35) and 42*(26) respectively and Oman are on their way to register an easy win.