Scotland can move a step closer to next year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier when they host UAE and Canada in a tri-series starting Monday. The series forms part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2, and Scotland currently sit third on the standings with four matches remaining.
Only the top four teams at the end of League 2 earn a direct spot in the Qualifier. Teams outside that mark drop into the Qualifier Play-off instead. A strong run over the next ten days would all but confirm Scotland’s place in the main event.
Scotland Reshuffle Squad Ahead of Home Series
Scotland will be without injured pair Brad Currie and Owen Gould for the series. The team has also left out experienced all-rounder Michael Leask, who featured on the side’s tour of Nepal in May. Zainullah Ihsan and Michael Jones return to the squad, and young batter Lyle Robertson earns a call-up.
The series marks the first home assignment for new coach Owen Dawkins. He said the team is looking forward to hosting Canada and UAE in a competitive series, adding that the Nepal tour brought good cricket against strong opposition in difficult conditions. Dawkins said the squad wants to build on that form and keep improving in front of home supporters. He added that the players have a clear plan for how they want to play and are focused on performing well, both individually and as a team.
UAE and Canada Look to Climb the Table
UAE and Canada will use the series to try to move up the League 2 standings. Both teams are currently at the bottom of the table, though they have more matches left to play than the sides above them.
UAE all-rounder Akshdeep Nath pointed to Ireland’s series win over T20 World Cup champions India last month as a source of belief heading into the tri-series. He said UAE sit at the bottom of the table now, but will not stay there for long. Nath said the team is focused on improving and doing its part. He noted that UAE have never beaten Scotland, but pointed out that Ireland had never beaten India either, before doing exactly that. He called it a new start and said the current group feels more connected than past squads. Nath said players now understand their roles and that the team is aiming to win at least three of the four matches, if not all of them.
Full Squads for the League 2 Tri-Series
Scotland: Richie Berrington (c), Matthew Cross, Oliver Davidson, Jasper Davidson, Michael English, Zainullah Ihsan, Jack Jarvis, Michael Jones, Ollie Jones, Finlay McCreath, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Lyle Robertson, Safyaan Sharif, Mark Watt.
UAE: Harpreet Singh Bhatia (c), Aayan Afzal Khan, Adeeb Usmani, Akshdeep Nath, Aryansh Sharma, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Arfan, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Shahdad, Muhammad Mohsin, Rahul Chopra, Simranjeet Singh, Sohaib Khan, Tanish Suri.
Canada: Saad Bin Zafar (c), Aaron Johnson, Anoop Chima, Ali Khan, Ansh Patel, Harsh Thaker, Mathew Spoorts, Meet Patel, Pargat Singh, Sana Kaleem, Shreyas Movva, Shivam Sharma, Yuvraaj Samra, Zahid Ullah Shirzad, Nicholas Kirton.
The tri-series runs across the next ten days, with results set to shape the closing stages of the League 2 standings before the World Cup Qualifier field is finalised.
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