Comfortable second warm-up match for Scots

Euan McIntyre reports from Pretoria on the second warm-up game against a TUKS Academy side.

Scotland 286 for six (Smith 97, McCallum 91, Sheikh 37, Coetzer 25); TUKS Academy XI 186 all out.

Following on from their comfortable victory against a combined Academy/University side on Sunday, the Scottish team were now faced with the prospect of playing the full Academy side who, just a few days previously, had beaten the Kenya team in a close encounter by just one wicket.

The day dawned bright and sunny, although the match had a delayed start by half an hour, until 10.00am, to allow the heavy dew to burn off.

Scotland, by arrangement with the Academy captain, took first lease of a wicket which looked very similar to the one encountered on Sunday, and so it turned out, although there was some early variable bounce.

The Academy opening bowlers proved a lively handful and captain Ryan Watson soon perished when his defensive push outside off stump led to a catch at second slip for just five runs.

With Kyle Coetzer now at the wicket alongside Qasim Sheikh, the score steadily progressed, with the partnership being broken one run short of 50 when Sheikh moved too far across his stumps and was bowled behind his legs for 37 with the score on 59. He had played some fine shots and it was a surprise when he was dismissed after ‘doing the hard work’.

He was extremely disappointed, commenting: “There was a hundred there for the taking and I should have made the most of it”.

The arrival of Colin Smith to join Coetzer was heralded by the Aberdeen policeman’s vicious drive to mid-off, which badly dislocated the fielder’s finger, sending him off the field for medical treatment.

Smith was carrying on in the same vein as his unbeaten 49 of two days before, hitting the ball with tremendous power and looking very much at ease with himself and the wicket.

He lost Coetzer when the Durham player picked out the only fielder on the leg-side boundary after despatching a long hop which, a yard or two either way, would have resulted in a boundary. He had scored 25 and, after his 31 on Sunday, must have felt disappointed not to have taken advantage of both of these starts.

The Watsonian PE teacher Neil McCallum, having been a victim of a cruel run out in the previous match, now strode to the wicket unaware that he and Smith were about to embark on a match-winning partnership. This was to be one of initial patience, consolidation, then a marvellous blossoming which was to garner 173 runs with, latterly, awesome bludgeoning power.

McCallum in particular took toll of the bowling as he hammered five sixes and 4 fours in his 91 ball 93, while Smith garnered eight fours and two sixes in his 94-ball 97.

It was a real pity that both batsmen failed to score their centuries. But it was typical of the team spirit among the party that neither batsman attempted in any way to put self interest above the greater good as they continued to attack every ball towards the end of the innings.

The innings closed after the allotted 50 overs with the Scots on 286 for six and in a strong position to maintain their winning record to date.

The Academy team had fielded exceptionally well with the vim and vigour redolent of youth and it didn’t take long for their opening batsmen to show the intent required to chase down such an imposing total.

However Nel’s pace proved too much for the attempted hook, third ball of the innings, of Van Buuren, which carried only to wide mid-on where former captain Craig Wright took an excellent diving catch.

Nel, however, was then treated with little respect as his first four overs were hit for 25 runs and he was replaced by Wright who, within an over, had wicket-keeper Cremer caught brilliantly down the leg side by his counterpart Smith standing up to the wicket.

Throughout the excitement Calum MacLeod, from the other end, was showing the talent that has taken him to Warwickshire CCC and a county career. His spell of 5 overs for 9 runs was crucial in keeping the score within bounds and he was desperately unlucky not to pick up any wickets during this time.

Jan Stander, who had been very successful in the previous match, now entered the fray and bowled most intelligently in picking up two wickets in his initial spell of five overs, his variations of pace again unhinging the batsmen.

At this point the captain turned to the spin bowling of Moneeb Iqbal and Majid Haq who bowled well in tandem, with Haq snaring one victim courtesy of Smith’s stumping, and Iqbal, while wicketless at this point, posing problems with his leg-spinners and googlies.

The match was by this stage all but over, and it was only left for the Academy to take up their five-over power play, which they utilised usefully in hitting several boundaries as the Scots tried various bowling options, including that of the captain, who entered the wickets column with Iqbal’s boundary catch.

The Academy innings ended with Iqbal’s second wicket - McCallum the catcher - and a total of 186, exactly 100 runs behind their visitors.

It had been a good all-round performance, set up by the batting of Smith and McCallum, and continued by all of the bowlers.

Latterly, there was a little tiredness in the legs which manifested itself in some less than sharp fielding. However the amount of work the squad have put in since their arrival in South Africa, and in particular the high altitude region of Pretoria, may well have been contributory factors.

The show now moves on to stiffer challenges, with a match on Thursday against the Guetang Lions, the local franchise team 2nd XI which plays in the first-class competitions here in South Africa - and then onto the World Cup Qualifying competition itself.

It is going to be an arduous assignment and nobody is under any other illusion.

Bowling: Nel 7-1-31-2; MacLeod 6-1-14-0; Wright 6-0-26-1; Stander 7-0-23-3; Iqbal     6.4-0-36-2; Haq 7-1-34-1; Watson 3-0-22-1

[Full Scorecard]