Published: Jan 14, 2015, 07:13 PM (IST)
Edited: Jan 14, 2015, 07:17 PM (IST)
Jan 14, 2015
Scotland‘s chances of finally winning a match in the series look bleak after Afghanistan restricted them to a total of 213. Scotland who won the toss put themselves in to bat, but were far from comfortable at the crease initially. Wickets kept coming for the Afghanistan bowlers like a flowing stream.
Opener, Kyle Coetzer once again made a mess, after getting a start, making 16 off 25. Freddie Coleman was the next man to get out scoring just two runs. Calum MacLeod, the other opener was quick to follow Coetzer back to the hut, getting out on five. Dubiously, this is also is his best score in the series as he got out without scoring in his previous two matches.
Reeling at 33 for three, Scots would have been praying for a healthy partnership. Skipper Preston Mommsen and Matt Machan showed promise for a big partnership, but after putting up 28 runs, the pair was broken as Machan lost his wicket to Mirwais Ashraf. Skipper, Mommsen didn’t last for too long after that and got out on 31 off 40 deliveries, Samiullah Shenwari getting him clean bowled.
The Scottish lower-middle order tried to stage a comeback and were successful to a certain degree. Matthew Cross contributed with a relatively brisk 23 off 29. Josh Davey then came out and batted very well as he stuck around with all-rounder Richie Berrington to put up a 99-run partnership. Berrington ended top-scorer for the Scots with 72 crucial runs. Davey also got to his half-century remaining unbeaten on 53 off 48 balls
The Scottish top and top-middle order put on a pathetic show, they looked nervous and anxious at the crease and credit to the Afghanistan bowling attack for exploiting their fragility with some tight lines and lengths. Aftab Alam and Ashraf were very good in particular. While Ashraf didn’t pick too many wickets, he maintained a solid stranglehold, choking the flow off runs. Alam however, was economical and also got adequately rewarded for his effort.
Had it not been for the efforts of Berrington and Davey, the innings would have folded a good while back. With 230 runs on the board they will harbour a small ray of hope of winning the match. But whether the Scottish bowlers have enough fire to curtail Afghanistan batting to that extent is highly doubtful.
Brief Scores
Scotland 213/7 (Richie Berrington 62, Josh Davey 53; Aftab Alam 3-48) against Afghanistan
