New generation shines as Scotland tops League 2

Scotland jumped Canada to the top of the points table in the second edition of Cricket World Cup League 2, the ICC’s premier Associates ODI competition, thanks in large part to the efforts of new players Charlie Cassell, Michael English, Jasper Davidson, and Charlie Tear. Their undefeated run through their home CWC League 2 trilateral series against Namibia and Oman was only marred by a wash-out in their opening match against the latter.

Re-entering ODI cricket following an outstanding performance at the T20 World Cup, but with only one victory from their league debut trip against the hosts United Arab Emirates, reigning champions Scotland made the most of home conditions to reclaim their supremacy over the opposition.

The first time they played, Namibia came closest to stealing two points from the hosts, taking a DLS lead and then threatening to chase after it, but the Scots held their composure and the rain held off long enough for the necessary wickets to fall before eventually falling with the hosts comfortably ahead.

With the Scots first home series originally slated for May, the third of 24 scheduled League 2 trilateral series had already been postponed due to the wettest summer in recent memory in Europe. Even so, the rain ended Scotland’s chase after 12.2 overs, with 25 runs still needed after Jasper Davidson (4-23) and Mark Watt (2-8) had seen Oman bowled out for just 123, denying the hosts a nearly certain victory in the series opener at Forfashire outside Dundee.

Despite Ben Shikongo’s career-best ODI figures of 4-29, Oman looked terrible at the bat heading into the tour, scoring just 200 runs in two 50-over warm-ups against Scotland A. However, twin half-centuries for former captain Zeeshan Maqsood and (relative) youngster Khalid Kail helped them post their best score of the tour in the first neutral match, posting 233-8. With nearly every member of the top order scoring, the Namibians easily achieved the mark. Jan Frylink, who usually bats at number three, led the chase with a score of 73, which helped the team win by six wickets.

Before both of them were bowled out by Tangeni Lungameni in the space of three balls, the Scots had taken a dominating 160-1 lead over Namibia thanks to an outstanding 91 off 62 from opener George Munsey and assistance from Brandon McMullen (37 off 53).

The visitors battled their way back into the game, but skipper Richie Berrington blasted a surprise 79*. The middle order offered little assistance, with Safyaan Sharif’s 23 from position 10 being the only other significant contribution to the final score of 290-9. Despite being sluggish to get going, as starter Lo-Handre Lourens set an unpleasant record with a 23-ball duck, Michael van Lingen’s 85-ball 60 made sure Namibia had a solid foundation. As the sky grew darker, captain Gerhard Erasmus found the necessary impetus to pull his team back into contention despite the frequent loss of wickets through the middle overs. He constantly moved ahead of DLS par, but the rain did not come.

The bottom order of Namibia persisted even after Erasmus hit a 51-ball 63 off Jasper Davidson, but Michael Leask claimed four wickets in a row to end the pursuit completely, and when the rain eventually came, Namibia was 47 runs short of their target.

Charlie Cassell, making his debut, dominated the next match against Oman. With Oman already in trouble at 22-2, the Australian-born and raised Aberdeen right arm quick came on as a first-change at his home ground. He became the first bowler in ODI cricket history to take wickets with each of his opening two deliveries, pinning Maqsood leg before wicket with his first and clean-bowling Ayyan Khan with his next. Oman was bowled out for just 91 runs, paving the way for a rout, with McMullen top-scoring with an undefeated 37* in a meaningless chase. He grabbed another two balls later on his way to a record 7-21 on debut.

Despite losing their final tour match against Namibia, Oman managed to secure their first victory of the competition because to a determined 68 off 129 from captain Aaqib Ilyas, who laid the groundwork for a valiant 197 chase. As Namibia was limited to 196-9 in the first innings, long-serving left-arm spearhead Bilal Khan made history as the fastest seam bowler to reach 100 ODI wickets by matches played, with 3-50. With the exception of the captain, Erasmus’s team appeared to be faltering on the field towards the end of the tour. Around 19 extras and a few squandered opportunities allowed Oman to surpass the target with five balls and four wickets remaining.

Long-term understudy Michael English gained an opportunity at the top of the order when Munsey left for GT20 duty in Canada prior to the series’ final game. English struck a brilliant 107 off 122 balls as the hosts amassed an impressive 301-6 against a seemingly worn-out Namibian side that was quickly reduced to 9-3 in reply. With assistance from Malan Kruger, Erasmus organised a slight comeback; nevertheless, the tourists’ hopes were short-lived as they lost by 138 runs when the Namibian captain was dismissed by Brad Currie just after reaching his fifty-score.

Also Read: Charlie Cassell of Scotland surpasses Kagiso Rabada’s record for highest figures on an ODI debut

Scotland, who currently retain the title, are now a point ahead of their opponents in League 2. When they visit the Netherlands in August, closest opponents Canada, who are still undefeated, will have the chance to retake the lead.