Michael Leask held his nerve to finish an unlikely comeback for Scotland as they kicked off their ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2023 marketing campaign with a bang whereas Oman made it two from two.
Eire, overwhelmed by Oman of their opener, appeared set to bounce again just for Leask to steer Scotland to a one-wicket victory off the ultimate ball in Bulawayo.
Within the different Group B match, Aqib Ilyas’ second successive half-century steered Oman to victory over the United Arab Emirates to spice up their hopes of constructing the Tremendous Six.
Leask snatches dramatic win for Scotland
Michael Leask hit two off the ultimate ball as Scotland shocked Eire with a one-wicket victory on the Queens Sports activities Membership in Bulawayo.
Curtis Campher appeared as he can be the hero of the day, coming to the crease with Eire reeling at 33 for 4 earlier than rattling off an important century to assist Eire put up a complete of 286 for eight.
That appeared like loads when Scotland slumped to 152 for seven in reply, earlier than Leask turned the tide.
Having misplaced their opener to Oman, Eire appeared in a world of bother when Paul Stirling and skipper Andy Balbirnie fell for golden geese off the second and third balls of the innings.
Brandon McMullen wreaked havoc with the brand new ball on his strategy to figures of 5 for 34, his first-ever ODI five-for.
Andy McBrine (32) and Campher set about rebuilding after Eire’s horrible begin, however when the opener was caught behind, they have been nonetheless in strife at 70 for 5.
George Dockrell got here in and offered invaluable help nevertheless, the pair including 136 for the sixth wicket earlier than Dockrell was bowled by the returning McMullen for 69.
By that stage, Campher had discovered his groove and he used help from the tailenders, notably Gareth Delany (19) to push Eire to 286 for eight, Campher the final man to go off the penultimate supply for an excellent 120.
Scotland made begin in reply, regardless of dropping Matthew Cross within the second over, as Chris McBride (56) added 50 with McMullen (10) and 34 with George Munsey (15) earlier than falling LBW to Campher.
The wickets continued to tumble, Josh Little (2/73) getting Richie Berrington and Tomas Waterproof coat to cut back Scotland to 122 for six.
Chris Greaves adopted quickly after however Leask (91 not out) and Mark Watt counter-attacked with 82 from 11.1 overs to maintain the chase alive earlier than the latter was stumped off Dockrell for 47.
Leask then took over, including 51 with Safyaan Sharif to go away Scotland needing eight from the final over. A 4 off the primary ball made the equation easier however Leask then took a single, permitting Mark Adair to pounce and take away Sharif for six.
That introduced final man Chris Sole to the crease, and after a dot, he scrambled a bye to get Leask again on strike needing two from the ultimate supply.
He acquired that and extra, with an inside edge racing to the boundary to see Scotland to an unlikely victory and additional dent Eire’s hopes of constructing the Tremendous Six.
Oman coast to second victory
Two days on from the momentous chase towards Eire, Oman did it once more in Bulawayo, easing to a five-wicket win towards the UAE.
A high quality effort with the ball, after electing to area first, put Oman in a powerful place as they restricted the UAE to 227 for eight from their 50 overs.
A trio of half-centuries, together with a second in a row from Aqib Ilyas, have been then sufficient to see Oman residence with 4 overs to spare regardless of a shaky begin.
Jay Odedra (3/31) was the star of the present with the ball, bowling Ramez Shahzad (38) and Vriitya Aravind (49) in fast succession after their 87-run stand for the third wicket.
He added Ali Naseer to deliver Aayan Afzal Khan to the wicket, with the 17-year-old giving his aspect an opportunity with an important knock.
Aayan hit 10 fours on his strategy to an unbeaten 58 from simply 52 deliveries, including 40 with Karthik Meiyappan and 33 with Zahoor Khan.
Needing 228 to win, Oman misplaced each openers to Junaid Siddique (2/31), Kashyap Prajapati first to go for six with Jatinder Singh (2) quickly following.
That introduced Aqib and Shoaib Khan collectively, the pair including precisely 100 earlier than Rohan Mustafa acquired by way of the defences of Aqib on 53.
Shoaib then left the sphere with cramps, earlier than Zeeshan Maqsood was LBW to Rohan for one because the chase began to falter.
Nonetheless, a 76-run stand between Mohammad Nadeem (50 not out) and Ayaan Khan (41) steadied the ship earlier than Shoaib returned to see the group residence and convey up his half-century, ending 52 not out.
Final-chance saloon for USA towards the Netherlands
Thursday’s motion comes from Group A, the place the Netherlands tackle the USA in a match neither group can afford to lose in Harare.
The US misplaced to Nepal final outing, two days after a gap defeat to the West Indies, which means this conflict with the Dutch is big for his or her hopes of reaching the Tremendous Six.
The Netherlands batted nicely towards Zimbabwe however couldn’t again that up with the ball of their opening fixture, however a win towards the US on the Takashinga Cricket Membership would get them again on observe.
In the meantime, the Windies can be looking for a second win in as many matches towards Nepal, who picked up a primary win of their marketing campaign towards the US of their final encounter.
A win for the Windies would put them in a commanding place, whereas Nepal can provide themselves an actual alternative of reaching the Tremendous Six with an upset on the Harare Sports activities Membership.
Scores briefly
Scotland beat Eire at Queens Sports activities Membership, Bulawayo by one wicketEire 286/8 in 50 overs (Curtis Campher 120, George Dockrell 69; Brandon McMullen 5/34, Christopher McBride 1/24)
Scotland 289/9 in 50 overs (Michael Leask 91*, Chris McBride 56; Mark Adair 3/57, George Dockrell 2/34)
Oman beat UAE at Bulawayo Athletic Membership, Bulawayo by 5 wickets
UAE 227/8 50 overs (Aayan Afzal Khan 58*, Vritya Aravind 49; Jay Odedra 3/31, Bilal Khan 2/46)
Oman 228/5 in 46 overs (Aqib Ilyas 53, Shoaib Khan 52*, Mohammad Nadeem 50*; Junaid Siddique 2/31, Rohan Mustafa 2/31)
Thursday 22 June – Fixtures
Group ANepal v West Indies Harare Sports activities Membership, Harare
Netherlands v United States at Takashinga Cricket Membership, Harare
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