Scots collapse before going top of the I-Cup table

This was in its way an extraordinary first-class match - the match of the wagging tails - which demonstrated once again that the long format of the game is one in which no batting side should ever give up the quest for runs, nor should the bowling side ever think that the result is secure.

Scotland, having won the toss, certainly made the most of their decision to field first, making steady progress through the Netherlands batting order. The ninth wicket fell 40 minutes after an early tea (light rain), with the score on 146, and the prospect of making significant inroads with the bat before the close of play.

But Westdijk kept Diepeveen company for another hour as they took the score to 210 before Matthew Parker took the final wicket. His haul of 4-63 was a remarkable achievement on his first-class and senior international debut. Majid Haq delivered 3-45 from his 28 overs, 10 of them maidens, while Drummond's 2-20 headed the economy rates. And three fanstastic catches for Gregor Maiden, while Richie Berrington warmed up with a brilliant run out and an astonishing diving catch in the covers.

With time for just six overs before stumps on the first day, it was a shame to see Dougie Lockhart cut to third slip in the fifth, and the Scots went into the second day on 16-1.

It was a nervy display at the start of Day 2, with Preston Mommsen also caught at slip, nightwatchman Simon Smith bowled trying to cut off-spinner Adeel Raja, and Qasim Sheikh driving a wide ball from Raja into extra cover's hands before lunch.

The second session proved much more fruitful, with Richie Berrington and Neil McCallum sharing a partnership of 133. Berrington's fine 82 registered his personal best at first-class and international level, while McCallum - having been dropped early on - also achieved his half-century and brought up Scotland's first-innings lead (and six points) before edging to third slip.

Gregor Maiden led the quest for a maximum first-innings advnatge with a bright and breezy 40, a sharply-rising ball edged to the keeper, and the Scots slept soundly with a useful lead of 63 with three wickets in hand at the end of Day 2.

The third morning brought the Scots rich dividends, extending their first-innings lead to 181. Matthew Parker's 65 was one of five first-class personal bests by Scottish batsmen (the others were Mommsen, Berrington, Maiden and Goudie), while Goudie's innings of 44 in 50 balls, including the only six of the game thus far, was perfectly designed to maximise Dutch frustration before they had to bat again.

That frustration was fully exploited by Parker and Berrington (pictured left), who quickly accounted for three of the top four Dutch batters, before Czwarczynski and Borren got their heads down with a partnership of 57. But the Netherlands still needed another 72 to make the Scots bat again.

With the score on 143, the first of three consecutive run outs was engineered by Berrington's throw to Parker caught Diepeveen out of his ground. Five overs later, Parker himself fired the ball in to keeper Smith to catch Jonkman, sent back from no-man's land. Three balls later, the Dutch disaster was abject, as non-striker Raja was also run out, this time Sheikh doing the business with Haq (pictured right).

The end may have looked to be in sight at 168-7, and the departure of Nijman, to a second consecutive lbw appeal by Berrington with no further run added, heightened expectations of a third-day finish. But Borren and Seelar shut up shop and blocked out the final six overs.

Borren came out fighting on the fourth morning. In an extraordinary assault, he blasted two four and four sixes on his way to an amazing century before, having added 57 runs to his overnight total in the space of 50 minutes, he was finally levered out by Parker, caught by McCallum at slip. Seelaar attempted to emulate him for a few more overs, but Parker's yorker unseated Westdijk, leaving the Scots with 77 runs to complete an outright victory.

But first, an awkward start. With Lockhart's mind perhaps on lunch just two overs away, he was clean bowled first ball by Jonkman. After the prescribed period for lunch, the over-relaxed Scottish batsmen then suffered a collective collapse of nerve in the face of hostile bowling from Jonkman (5-21), with four more wickets falling before reaching double figures, and a sixth with the score on 18.

At last, though, McCallum and Haq - the latter no doubt determined that his 100th cap should not be remembered for the wrong reasons - got it together in a professional manner to see it through to a rather relieved conclusion. What coach Peter Steindl had to say in the dressing room can only be imagined.

But Scotland, once again, under the leadership of Gordon Drummond, had maintained a 100% first-innings points record, and the 20 points on offer for outright victory took them to the top of the I-Cup table, with two matches remaining. Next on the schedule is second-placed Afghanistan at Ayr in August.

[Scorecard] [photos]

Commentaries: [Day 1], [Day 2], [Day 3], [Day 4]

Pictures courtesy of ICC