A career-best performance from Marcus Stoinis has helped a shaky Australia to an eventually commanding win over Oman to begin their T20 World Cup campaign on a winning note in Barbados.

Coming in with Australia 3/50 and in a spot of bother after a stunning catch from Oman captain Aqib Ilyas removed Glenn Maxwell for a golden duck, Stoinis bludgeoned six sixes in an unbeaten 67 off just 36 balls to steer the favourites to safety, before two early wickets with the ball ensured the Associates’ run chase of 165 was never truly on track.

He finished with 3/19 from three overs as Oman managed just 9/125 off their 20 overs to lose by 39 runs, with Australia’s biggest scare in the run chase a calf cramp that left Mitchell Starc unable to complete his fourth over.

Having lost his spot in Australia’s best ODI team during their successful World Cup run in India last year before missing out on a Cricket Australia central contract for the 2024/25 summer, the 34-year old Stoinis’ all-round heroics would have come as sweet relief, and a sign his international career is far from done.

Having fought off pressure for his all-rounder spot from emerging prodigy Cameron Green and spin-bowling option Ashton Agar, Stoinis’ batting exploits have surely secured his spot for the remainder of the World Cup group stage at least, with a far tougher fixture against England at the same venue on Sunday (AEST) up next.

“Just looking to hit the ball along the ground to start, just keep it simple,” player of the match Stoinis said of his innings after victory was secured.

“It wasn’t easy, but then just pick your bowlers and aim straight.

“It is a nice start. Maybe a few cobwebs for us, but we’re better for the run.”

Australian captain Mitchell Marsh admitted the match was a ‘close one’.

“It’s going to look a bit different at this tournament – it’s not going to be the 200 wickets. It’s sort of going back to the old T20 a little bit!” he said, before praising Stoinis’ game-changing innings.

“It was pretty special from Stoin. Took his time, also showed his experience and then got going towards the back end.”

Having lost the toss and been sent in after making the bold call to leave champion fast bowler Pat Cummins out of the XI, Australia’s top order soon found themselves under pressure as a fired-up Oman attack made the most of a trickily slow Kensington Oval pitch.

After losing partner Travis Head for just 12 to a catch at mid-off attempting to drive the wily Bilal Khan down the ground, David Warner was content to keep the tempo at a steady pace in the early overs, passing Aaron Finch’s Australian T20I run-scoring record along the way.

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However, having cruised with minimal fuss to 1/50 after eight overs, the go-slow looked in danger of backfiring as Mehran Khan struck in successive balls to remove Marsh and Maxwell to threaten a stunning upset.

Having been bogged down by the surface, Marsh picked out long-on attempting to heave his first six of the tournament over the longest boundary on the ground, before Maxwell nailed a cover drive only to watch in horror as Oman captain Aqib dived full-length to snaffle a screamer inches from the turf.

Suddenly cock-a-hoop, the underdogs would be made to rue a tough dropped chance from keeper Pratik Athavale, who shelled a thick outside edge from Stoinis off Aqib that would have seen the back of the Western Australian for just five.

Riding his luck, Stoinis’ second stroke of misfortune came when Ayaan Khan’s catch on the long-off boundary off Mehran took him into the ropes to both cost Oman the wicket and gift the Australian innings its first six.

The moment would prove the circuit-breaker for Stoinis and the Aussies, the all-rounder far more authoritative in larruping three further sixes in the over; having conceded just 12 from his first three overs while picking up two wickets, Mehran’s last would end up costing him 26.

Along the way bringing up the 50-run partnership with the still sedate Warner, Oman wilted in the face of Stoinis’ onslaught, with a rank Bilal full toss dispatched over mid-wicket for a six and a no ball summing up the change in fortune, and bringing up the all-rounder’s 50.

Warner too brought up his half-century in identical fashion, pumping Shakeel Ahmed over long on for a six of his own; and while he would fall in the penultimate over for a 51-ball 56 – and receive a send-off from a fired-up Kaleemullah in the process, Australia’s momentum was now unstoppable.

A dropped sitter in the final over handed Stoinis another life, and with 84 runs clobbered from the final six overs, not even Tim David’s final-ball run out going for a nonexistent second round could put a dent in a suddenly imposing total of 5/164 on a still tricky pitch.

Unbeaten on 67 at the close, the lion’s share of the turnaround belonged to Stoinis; and after Starc removed Athavale LBW for a first-ball duck to continue his remarkable record of striking in an innings’ opening over, the all-rounder took centre stage once again.

Responding to a monster six from Aqib by eliciting an edge behind from the Oman captain to end his innings on 18, Stoinis struck again in his second over, veteran Zeeshan Maqsood surprised by the extra bounce on a wide offering to feather another edge through to Matthew Wade.

6/57 after 13 overs when Adam Zampa skittled Shoaib Khan for his 300th T20 wicket, all hope of a miracle comeback was gone, though Australia still faced a scare when Starc pulled up lame in his run-up with an apparent calf injury, limping from the field without completing his final over.

A later diagnosis that the left-arm quick had only suffered a cramp would have come as undoubted relief, though Cummins would have made for a handy back-up had a worse injury been sustained.

A brief cameo from Ayaan that featured two monster sixes off Zampa gave the Associates some small measure of joy, but the Australian leg-spinner would have the last laugh with the Omani blaster top-edging another slog to be safely pouched by Josh Hazlewood at short fine leg.

Stoinis returned to pick up a third wicket in slightly ironic fashion, Mehran holing out as David claimed an excellent catch throwing the ball back into play on the boundary rope – a similar dismissal to the one Mehran himself could have inflicted on the Aussie all-rounder early in his innings.

His first blemish from the evening came in dropping a tough chance at short third man in the last over to spare Kaleemullah, though a fine catch from Warner at deep point one ball later ensured Nathan Ellis would still get a second wicket for the evening.

It will come as some small measure of pride for Oman that they were able to avoid being bowled out, with the margin of defeat of just 39 runs also a fine achievement for a cricketing nation on the rise.

“Playing against the top side – it was great to play against them, and they did really well, but credit goes to our bowlers,” a proud Aqib said after the match, while ruing the Stoinis drop that proved game-changing.

“On the turning tracks, our bowlers can do really well – and you can see, one catch messed up, and that over went for big runs, and then from there, Stoinis took it on.

“Credit goes to our boys – they did really well.”

Australia have three days to prepare for a blockbuster clash with old enemies England, while Oman head to Antigua to face Scotland looking to break their duck at the tournament.