The thrill of going toe-to-toe with Australia in the Caribbean with a World Cup Super 8s place on the line will feel like a lifetime ago when the Scotland men’s team returns to the cricketing arena this morning. Doug Watson’s side performed so valiantly in that tournament – starting with a thumping batting performance against England before the rain intervened – and won a clutch of new admirers with wins over Namibia and Oman and a narrow loss to Australia before exiting on the equivalent of goal difference, net run rate. Life as an ICC Associate member nation isn’t all glamour, however, which is why the Scots will return to the fray today in Broughty Ferry for the start of a World Cricket League 2 tri-series against familiar foes, Namibia and Oman.
It must be tough mentally for those players who starred in St Lucia and battled hard in Barbados to raise themselves for four matches against lesser lights but motivation will stem from the very purpose of this tournament which is to try to qualify for the 2027 50-over World Cup. “It’s always tough to come back from a World Cup when you wanted to do more and get to the next stage ,” admits bowler Mark Watt. “But the guys have had plenty of time to dust ourselves off and have a bit of a mental break.
Now we’re ready to get back into the swing of it. “We did ourselves no harm in the World Cup against the bigger nations. We went full guns blazing and showed the whole world how good we can be against the top-tier.
