Scotland record first win at ICC global ev

NAGPUR: Scotland defeated Hong Kong under D/L method in the rain-affected match in the World Twenty20 first round group B here at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium Saturday night.Scotland had gone 20 matches in ICC global events – since the 1999 World Cup – without a win. The losing streak hung like Coleridge’s albatross around their necks. They were desperate to shake it off.In their 21st match, against Hong Kong on an unexpectedly rainy night in Nagpur, they finally did it and exited the World T20 with an eight-wicket win, which was set up by a sharp bowling performance.The portents were clear right from the third ball of the match. Left-arm spinner Mark Watt gave generous flight as the ball gripped the cracked pitch and tested Jamie Atkinson with slow turn. Some balls turned like that, some skidded on, while others stopped on the batsmen.The trio of Watt, Con de Lange, and Matt Machan combined to send Hong Kong on a tail spin with figures of 12-0-66-4.Rain gave Hong Kong brief respite, and the contest was then reduced to a 10-over shootout, after which Scotland overhauled the revised target of 76 with ease.George Munsey kick-started the chase with a flurry of fours. By the time he holed out, Scotland had knocked off more than one fourth of their target. And by the sixth over Scotland had dashed past 50, with several of their players lining up by the edge of the boundary to celebrate.