Scots get close to West Indies, but not close enough

The near-secret series of ‘unofficial’ warm-up matches ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 Championships got under way on Thursday at the picturesque John Paul Getty ground at Wormsley, Buckinghamshire, between Scotland and the West Indies.

Also taking part in these matches are Ireland and a Select XI formed from members of the Professional Cricketers’ Association - such as Darren Gough, who was there yesterday, as was Helensburgh-born Peter Such.

With John Blain and Kyle Coetzer not yet joined the party, Gavin Hamilton won the toss and immediately asked the West Indies - shorn of Chris Gayle and three others from their party - to set the target. Dewald Nel and Gordon Drummond - the latter in mean, run-denying mood, opened the bowling, and initial caution by Simmons and Fletcher yielded only one big straight six for the latter in the first five of the six overs of power play.

A smart stumping by Colin Smith off Jan Stander got rid of Simmons by the end of the fifth over, but Fletcher started hitting to the rope in the ensuing overs, as the West Indies target of one boundary an over was at last fulfilled.

Another good stumping gave Glenn Rogers Fletcher’s head in his second over, out for 42, but Chanderpaul, who had been very quiet suddenly took a liking to both the left-arm spinner and an overpitching Craig Wright.

Rogers got his man in the 15th over when Gordon Drummond took an excellent catch running in from the deep mid-wicket boundary to send Chanderpaul back to the thatched-roof pavilion. Pollard was run out in the same over, and the West Indies had been contained to 96-4 with three-quarters of their overs gone.

Wright induced a shot from Ramdin down Ryan Watson’s throat at deep mid-on in the next over, and Nel’s reintroduction gave Dwaine Bravo the  first boundary for three overs. The last three overs, however, went for 34, with Bravo racing to his half-century off the final ball.

The target of 144 to beat at seven an over seemed eminently reachable as the Scots embarked on their response, and the first over yielded nine. But the early loss of Hamilton, caught behind, followed by Ryan Watson, short of his crease going for a second run in the fourth over, set the Scots back.

Colin Smith joined Fraser Watts for a sparkling little partnership, but mostly in singles until the tenth over as they fell behind the run-rate. Then Watts, emboldened by a superb straight six, sought one quick run too many and failed to make his ground when sent back by Smith.

McCallum joined Smith and carved out a half-century partnership that kept Scottish hopes alive with some enterprising cricket that conceded only four dot balls in the next six overs. Both perished with the score on 104 in the 17th over, Smith caught in the deep for 40, and McCallum run out by a direct throw for 21.

With 41 required from the last three overs, it needed someone capable of hitting a few maximums, but Wright was tied up in knots and Berrington did not seem the man for this particular moment. Both were quickly out, and Jan Stander - who might have been expected to be sent in earlier, faced the last five balls with 29 still needed for victory. He cleared the mid-on rope with the first two, but was adjudged lbw from the third, and the game was won and lost.

Losing to the West Indies by just 14 runs was, in the bigger picture, an encouraging outcome for Scotland, and will hopefully set them up for a win over the next two days, to send them into their ‘official’ warm-up meeting with England at Trent Bridge on Tuesday in good spirits.
 

Report by Mike Stanger

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