Scotland 249/8 (50 overs) Cross 107*, Munsey 45, beat UAE 218 (46.3 overs) Shabber 90, Whittingham 2/38, Watt 2/33, by 31 runs [Scorecard]
Matthew Cross scored his maiden ODI century for Scotland as they recorded a 31-run win against tournament hosts UAE on Sunday.
Scotland welcomed back captain Kyle Coetzer and Safyaan Sharif from their last outing against Ireland on Thursday, at the expense of Michael Leask and Scott Cameron.
Coetzer and Michael Jones made a steady start for the Scots, putting on 42, before both batsmen fell within an over of each other.
George Munsey added 45 runs with Matthew Cross after the wickets of Berrington (8), MacLeod (5) and Wallace (0) to lead the recovery.
Cross continued to play positively and found support in Saffyan Sharif (22) to push the score past 200.
Cross would reach his first One Day International hundred in the final over of the innings, as he struck 19 runs from it to conclude on 107*, as Scotland posted 249/8 from their 50 overs.
In reply, Ghulam Shabber led the charge for the hosts after Sharif struck in the first over. The UAE dusted themselves down to get to within 139 runs of victory with only 3 wickets down.
However, when Shabber departed, run out for 90, the wheels started to come off the innings as the Scotland bowlers began to exert some control.
Mark Watt dismissed Shaiman Anwar LBW with 86 runs required but only 4 wickets remaining. The UAE battled hard but wickets fell at regular intervals, and were 31 runs away victory when Ali Evans claimed the final wicket to give Scotland their first win of the Tri-Series.
Matthew Cross was awarded Player of the Match for his first ODI hundred, while Whittingham, Watt, Sharif and Evans all collected two wickets each.
After the game Head Coach Grant Bradburn said, “It was nice for the team to earn that winning feeling again today, especially in a tight contest. Matthew Cross expertly managed the innings during a difficult time, guiding us through to what we knew could be a winning total.
The perfect performance has not yet come together, though we feel there are enough positive signs to know what this team is capable of.”
Scotland’s final match of the Tri-Series will be against the UAE on Tuesday before flying home.
