Oman have secured direct qualification for the 2027 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier despite losing their final ICC Men's Cricket World Cup League 2 match against the United Arab Emirates (UAE). They finished level with Namibia on 33 points but claimed fourth place thanks to a superior net run rate (NRR).

Oman lost by 42 runs while chasing 227 against the UAE in Dubai. The team needed to avoid a defeat by more than 130 runs to stay ahead. They had already lost six consecutive matches before the final fixture. UAE scored 226 runs for the loss of 8 wickets before restricting the opposition team to 184 runs.

Oman Lose to UAE by 42 Runs but Secure Fourth Place in League 2

Chasing 227, Oman suffered an early collapse and slipped to 28/3. They struggled to recover from the setbacks and eventually finished on 184/9, losing the match by 42 runs. Mujibur Ali offered some resistance with a fighting 65, but the UAE bowlers kept the chase under control.

Earlier, the UAE posted 226/8 after being asked to bat first. Captain Rahul Chopra and Adeeb Usmani scored 47 runs each, while Basil Hameed added 43 to help their side reach a competitive total. Oman's left-arm spinner Shakeel Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/42.

Despite the defeat, Oman's earlier results proved enough to secure qualification. They finished fourth with 33 points and an NRR of -0.224, narrowly ahead of Namibia, who also collected 33 points but had an NRR of -0.278.

Namibia had started their League 2 campaign strongly, winning four of their first five matches. However, they lost 16 of their next 18 ODIs before winning four of their final six games. The late recovery was not enough to secure direct qualification.

Oman Join USA, Scotland and Netherlands in Global Qualifier

Oman will join the United States, Scotland and the Netherlands as the four teams progressing directly from League 2 to the 10-team Global Qualifier. The USA finished first with 49 points from 24 wins, followed by Scotland with 45 points and 19 victories.

The Netherlands secured third place with 44 points and 20 wins. Namibia finished fifth with 33 points, while Nepal took sixth place with 30 points and 14 wins. Canada were seventh with 29 points from 12 victories, and the UAE finished eighth with 25 points and 11 wins.

The bottom four teams — Namibia, Nepal, Canada and the UAE — will now compete in the eight-team Qualifier Playoff. They will be joined by Jersey and Kuwait, who advanced from World Cup Challenge League A, and Italy and Uganda, who progressed from Challenge League B.

The Qualifier Playoff will offer the final opportunity for these eight teams to reach the Global Qualifier, with the top four advancing to the 10-team tournament. The Global Qualifier will then decide the final four places at the 2027 World Cup.

Global Qualifier to Decide Final Four World Cup Spots

The 10-team Global Qualifier will feature Oman, the USA, Scotland and the Netherlands, along with four teams from the Qualifier Playoff and established Full Member sides, including the West Indies and Ireland. The tournament is scheduled to take place from February 26 to March 21, 2027.

The team that wins the Global Qualifier will earn direct entry into the 12-team World Cup group stage, skipping the opening round. The sides finishing second, third and fourth will also qualify for the World Cup but will enter the preliminary round as the 12th, 13th and 14th seeds, respectively.

The 2027 men's ODI World Cup will be hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia from October 2 to November 21. The 14-team tournament will feature 57 matches across 12 venues.