Why Jay Odedra is Not Playing Today in IRE vs OMA T20 World Cup 2026?

The ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 has reached half-way with some thrilling games in the past few days. Not only the big teams, but associate nations have also produced some stunning matches, keeping the audience hooked to their seats throughout. The 22nd match of the tournament is between Ireland and Oman at the Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo on February 14.

Having won the toss, Oman captain Jatinder Singh decided to bowl first. While they made two changes to the playing XI, the absence of Jay Odedra was quite evident from the IRE vs OMA T20 World Cup 2026 game.

Why Jay Odedra Is Not Playing Today Against Ireland?

Oman captain Jatinder Singh looked quite confident during the toss regarding the team combinations when he decided to ask Ireland to bat first. But, the exclusion of Jay Odedra did catch attention of the fans. The 36-year-old cricketer played his first match against Sri Lanka where he claimed a wicket in the only over he got to bowl. The skipper didn't mention any reason behind his snub it can be due to team combinations. They brought in Shakeel Ahmed as Jay Odedra replacement since he is much more experienced player.

Shakeel has played in 45 T20Is and claimed 34 wickets at an average of 29.44. Since Oman have lost two matches, they require experienced players in their side who can help them win from here and he has skills to bowl against some of the best T20 teams in the world. The batters will also have to step up in the upcoming games, only then they'll be able to end up on the winning side.

Oman (Playing XI): Aamir Kaleem, Jatinder Singh(c), Hammad Mirza, Ashish Odedara, Mohammad Nadeem, Jiten Ramanandi, Vinayak Shukla(w), Nadeem Khan, Sufyan Mehmood, Shah Faisal, Shakeel Ahmed.

Shakeel Ahmed Takes Three Wickets Against Ireland

In the 22nd match against Ireland, Shakeel Ahmed was included in the team after being dropped in the previous game against Sri Lanka. The 38-year-old bowler made it a point to prove himself and drew the first blood in the very first over by dismissing Tim Tector. The Irish batter started the match by slamming a boundary on the first ball but Ahmed sent him back to the pavilion on the fifth ball.

Then, in his second over, he dismissed Ross Adair, who was looking in great form today. He had hit three boundaries in the previous over but Ahmed removed him as well. In his third over, he dismissed Harry Tector. Oman will be happy with his performance as he got two early wickets, putting pressure on Ireland.