With the Men’s Asia Cup 2025 now moving to the Super Four stage with the top two teams from each group progressing further, the final group match, which was played between India and Oman on Friday, September 19 was an exciting one. The defending champions, who came into the game after two successive victories, won the toss and elected to bat first, thus inviting Oman to bowl first.
On the back of a well-made 56 from Sanju Samson and key knock from Abhishek Sharma at the top or the order, India posted 188 in their 20 overs. In reply, the Oman side too gave a tough fight, courtesy a 33-ball 32 from skipper Jatinder Singh and Aamir Kaleem’s 64 off 46 deliveries, along with a 51-run knock from Hamaad Mirza.
Aamir Kaleem becomes oldest batter to score 50 vs India in any format
While this wasn’t enough for the Oman side
as they were eventually restricted to 167/4 in 20 overs. However, Aamir Kaleem caught several eyeballs as he became the oldest batter to score a half-century against India in any format of the game. At 43 years and 303 days, Kaleem broke a 79-year-old long standing record, which was previously held by England’s Wally Hammond, who scored 69 against India in 1946 Old Trafford Test match.
Furthermore, during his 46-ball stay in the middle, he also became the oldest to hit a T20I fifty against a full member nation, surpassing Chris Gayle’s record. Kaleem, who hit nine boundaries during his 64-run knock on Friday, battled through cramps to put up a tough fight.
Here is all you need to know about Aamir Kaleem:
Age: 14 years
Date of Birth: 20 November 1981
Role: Middle-order Batter
Batting Style: Left-handed Bat
Bowling Style: Slow left arm orthodox
Team: Oman
Debut:
List A: Scotland vs Oman at Aberdeen - August 15, 2019
T20: Oman vs Italy at ICCA Dubai - March 13, 2012
T20I: Oman vs Afghanistan in Dublin - July 25, 2015
ODI: Scotland vs Oman in Aberdeen - August 15, 2019