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An ability to “learn and adapt” has been identified by Andy Flower as the key to England’s series victory in India

George Dobell18-Dec-2012An ability to “learn and adapt” has been identified by Andy Flower as the key to England’s series success victory in India. By drawing the final Test in Nagpur, England secured their first series win in India since 1984-85 and inflicted a first home series defeat upon India since 2004.It was a far cry from the events in the UAE a few months earlier. At that time, as England succumbed to a 3-0 series defeat against Pakistan, England’s batsmen had no answer to the spin threat of Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman.But Flower, the England team director, took particular satisfaction from the way his team had accepted their failings in the UAE and worked to improve. He also admitted that an element of complacency may have crept into the squad after they had reached the No.1 Test ranking at the end of 2011.”I don’t know if lost focus is quite the right phrase to use,” Flower said, “but if there are degrees of hunger and desire perhaps we dropped off a couple after getting to No 1.”We had a tough time in the UAE against Pakistan at the start of the year, and one of the most satisfying things at the minute – certainly for me, and I’m sure for the players – is that they’ve shown they can score runs. We’ve come out here and very importantly shown that this bunch of cricketers can learn and adapt.”They have proved they have learned a lot. For some of the older players, guys that have been around and have excellent Test career achievement, that is testament to their humility and their maturity to continue their learning into this phase of their careers. They have still adapted their game and shown their game can improve. It’s taken a lot of hard work, a lot of thought and a lot of skill out there in the middle. They should be very proud of themselves.”We certainly refocused on this challenge in India. We knew we would have to display that we have learned certain things about the game of cricket in these conditions if we were to prevail so it’s nice to see that has happened. I certainly wouldn’t describe it as a year of decline.”Flower credited Alastair Cook as a key figure in England’s success. Cook, the England captain, led from the front with a defiant century in defeat in Ahmedabad that showed his team what could be achieved with patience and composure. While Cook also made centuries in Mumbai and Kolkata, an increasing number of his team-mates contributed decisive performances as the series progressed.”That innings at Ahmedabad was vitally important as a lead,” Flower said. “It provided evidence that runs could be scored if you use your brain, if you’ve got a reasonable method, if you show courage and discipline. He did that and for the captain to do that was especially important. He has been very influential in the series. We are very lucky to follow a quality bloke like Andrew Strauss with a quality bloke like Alastair Cook as leaders of the England side.

England’s testing year

v Pakistan, Dubai Lost by 10 wickets
v Pakistan, Abu Dhabi Lost by 72 runs
v Pakistan, Dubai Lost by 72 runs

v Sri Lanka, Galle Lost by 75 runs
v Sri Lanka, Colombo Won by eight wickets

v West Indies, Lord’s Won by five wickets
v West Indies, Trent Bridge Won by nine wickets
v West Indies, Edgbaston Drawn

v South Africa, The Oval Lost by an innings and 12 runs
v South Africa, Headingley Drawn
v South Africa, Lord’s Lost by 51 runs

v India, Ahmedabad Lost by nine wickets
v India, Mumbai Won by 10 wickets
v India, Kolkata Won by seven wickets
v India, Nagpur Match Drawn

“I said to him I thought tactically he has been excellent – and you can’t always say that about English sides in the sub-continent. I think he’s been a good observer of the opposition, and what works for them, and he’s used some of that to our advantage.”There was also praise for Kevin Pietersen who returned to the squad for this series having been dropped following revelations about his poor relationship with his England team-mates. Pietersen started nervously, but made a brilliant century at Mumbai which helped alter the direction of the series.”He has been excellent since he has been back with the England side,” Flower said. “The guys have enjoyed having him around and he has fitted in really easily and everyone has made an effort to make it work. It has worked.”He has played superbly. I thought his innings in Mumbai on a difficult, turning track was one of the better innings I have seen played against spinners in those type of conditions. It was a very, very skilful innings; even more skilful after he had struggled in the first Test because that piled a certain amount of pressure on him. So for him to handle that pressure, turn it round and then dominate the opposition as he did was great testament to him holding his nerve.”While the victory provided a happy ending to a difficult year, Flower was keen to stress that there had been other positive achievements among the disappointments.”We’ve had up-and-down results,” he said. “We didn’t play that well against the spin in the UAE, but we’ve also done some superb things.”We became number one in one-day international cricket; we drew an important Test series in Sri Lanka, and won one against the West Indies. And then we lost to a very good South African side in England. I don’t think there is any embarrassment in that. That happens in international sport.”Flower is now taking a break. While England return to T20 action on Thursday, Flower will be back in the UK with his family having relinquished his day-to-day involvement with England’s limited-overs squads. Ashley Giles starts in the role of England’s limited-overs coach in the New Year.But it would be incorrect to conclude that Flower is not still the man in charge in all formats of the game. The idea is that Giles will bring new energy to the limited-overs teams, allowing Flower to remain fresh and to spend more time with his family. Certainly he is still planning for challenges ahead in all formats, with the Champions Trophy, to be played in England in 2013, a particular target.”I do have a young family and they have supported me amazingly well over my playing and coaching career and it is time for me to make sure that I can give a little more time to them,” Flower said. “The purpose of the move is to make us a more efficient organisation and to use our resources as wisely as possible so certainly that will assist me to remain involved with the English side.”Ashley Giles is a smart cricket coach with very good experience of both coaching and playing and I think he can do a very good job with the limited-overs sides. We hope he can take the limited-overs teams forward. We don’t know if the system is going to work ideally, just like we didn’t when we introduced three different captains for the three different facets of cricket that we play. But our job is to make it work.”It is going to be a busy year. We’ve got the Champions Trophy – one of our priorities – happening in England and we’ll have a chance there. Then there’s the two Ashes series in the second half of the year. That’s going to be some tough, sustained cricket. But we’ve shown out here that we can play that type of cricket, and that we learn to survive in different conditions.”

A round-up of the QEA Trophy matches that ended on January 16

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jan-2013Group 1Quetta routed Peshawar by an innings and 171 runs inside three days at the Arbab Niaz Stadium.After being sent into bat, Quetta posted a formidable first-innings score, with Ali Asad making an unbeaten 210 and the captain Taimur Ali scoring 120. It was Ali Asad’s highest first-class score, and Taimur’s third hundred in 53 matches. Quetta declared on 483 for 8 on the second day.Peshawar ended that day on 70 for 4 in their first innings and collapsed to 117 all out in 41.3 overs on the third. Naved Khan was the only batsman to make more than 20 as Gohar Faiz took career best figures of 5 for 39 for Quetta. Peshawar had been 51 for 1 at one stage so they lost nine wickets for 66 runs.They fared only marginally better in the follow-on. Arun Lal took 5 for 69 for Quetta as they dismissed Peshawar for 195 in 41.2 overs. Gauhar Ali scored a run a ball 59 but with little support from his team-mates Peshawar slid surely towards a huge defeat.An unbeaten century from Majid Jahangir led Sialkot to a nine-wicket victory against Islamabad on the fourth day in Lahore. Chasing a target of 209, Jahangir made 112 and Faisal Khan scored an unbeaten 68 to help Sialkot get to victory in the 48th over.Sialkot’s fourth innings score of 212 for 1 was markedly different from the other three batting efforts. After choosing to bowl, Sialkot had taken the upper hand by dismissing Islamabad for 193 in 71.3 overs. Islamabad were struggling at 123 for 6 before Imad Wasim’s unbeaten 70 helped them add 70 more. Nayyer Abbas took 4 for 27 for Sialkot.Sialkot’s advantage was quickly neutralised, though, when Islamabad had them tottering at 75 for 7, with Nasrullah Khan and Iftikhar Anjum cutting through the top order. A brace of half-centuries from Abbas and Bilal Butt – a partnership of 103 for the eighth wicket – lifted them to 202. Iftikhar finished with 5 for 62.In their second innings, Islamabad lost a wicket before the deficit of 9 was erased, and two more when the lead was only 3. They then had a partnership of 89 for the fourth wicket and prospects were looking good. They slumped thereafter, though, losing wickets frequently to be dismissed in 76 overs for 217. Faizan Riaz and Wasim scored 51 and 50, while Ali Khan took 3 for 42.A target of 209 should have been challenging, considering the trend of the previous three innings, but Sialkot gunned for the loss of only one wicket.Multan earned three points for taking the first-innings lead in their drawn match against Lahore Ravi in Lahore.Multan made a poor start to their first innings after they were sent in to bat, and were struggling at 20 for 3. They were steadied by Shoaib Maqsood and their captain Naved Yasin, who added 176 for the fourth wicket. Maqsood scored 109, while Yasin made 80. They lost wickets in pairs thereafter, though, and were dismissed for 309 early on the second day. Adnan Rasool took 5 for 91 for Lahore Ravi.Lahore Ravi were coasting towards a first-innings lead, having reached 173 for 1 because of opener Irfan Haider’s half-century. They then lost two wickets on the same score and later on slipped from 220 for 3 to 248 all out. Rahat Ali took 5 for 44 and Zulfiqar Babar took 3 for 99 for Multan.Multan were more solid in their second innings, with the openers Usman Liaqat and Zeeshan Ashraf scoring half-centuries and the rest of the top order getting starts. They progressed to 252 for 5 – Ali Manzoor took four of those wickets for Lahore Ravi – before declaring 313 runs ahead.Lahore Ravi lost two early wickets in the chase but Ikhlaq Butt made 105 and Saadullah Gauri scored 62 to ensure there would be no outright defeat. They finished on 219 for 5 as the game was drawn.Group 2Mohtashim Ali and Fawad Alam scored centuries to help Karachi Whites earn first-innings points from a drawn match against Hyderabad at the Niaz Stadium.Hyderabad had won the toss and decided to bat at home. They lost an early wicket but were steadied by opener Sharjeel Khan’s 64. Rizwan Ahmed made 105 at No. 4 but unfortunately for the hosts those were the only two innings of substance. Atif Maqbool took 5 for 97 for Karachi Whites to help them dismiss Hyderabad for 309.Karachi Whites had taken the lead, thanks to Mohtashim (121) and Alam, before they slipped from 312 for 4 to 322 for 7. Mohammad Sami scored 77 off 99 balls though and Alam remained unbeaten on 153 as Karachi Whites eventually declared on 496 for 8.Hyderabad slipped to 69 for 3 in their second innings before Rizwan Ahmed scored his second century of the match to prop them up. They ended on 277 for 6, with Maqbool and Faraz Ahmed taking three wickets each for Karachi Whites.Rawalpindi overcame a significant first-innings deficit to pull off a thrilling chase by two wickets against Faisalabad at the Mirpur Cricket Stadium.Faisalabad, after getting sent in to bat, had been dismissed for 226 in the first innings. Moazzam Hayat made 52, Mohammad Salman scored an unbeaten 70, and Zeeshan Butt scored 45, but there was not much else from the others. Sadaf Hussain took 4 for 63 for Rawalpindi.In their reply, Rawalpindi were shot out for 132 in 40.1 overs. They were floundering at 73 for 7 before Umar Waheed made 39 and Mohammad Nawaz 22. Waqas Maqsood took 4 for 62 for Faisalabad, while Nasir Akram and Hasan Mahmood took three each.Rawalpindi then returned the favour, dismissing Faisalabad for 130 in their second innings. Sadaf Hussain claimed 4 for 17 in 5.3 overs and Nasir Malik took 3 for 55. Faisalabad would not have got past 100 if not for Mohammad Salam’s 42. They were 66 for 8 at one stage and he was the only batsman to make more than 20. Because of their first-inninsg lead of 94, Faisalabad were ahead by 224.Rawalpindi’s chase began poorly: they were 46 for 4. Umar Waheed, the No. 3 batsman, was steady at his end and he found a partner in Adnan Mufti. They added 90 runs for the fifth wicket before Mufti was dismissed. Waheed then dominated a sixth wicket stand of 56 with Zahid Mansoor that took Rawalpindi to 192. Though wickets fell at one end, Waheed remained firm at the other and he was unbeaten on 99, with the No. 10, Nasir Malik for company when the winning runs were scored.

Josh Hazlewood will miss at least the first two matches for Australia A against the England Lions this month due to the latest in a series of foot ailments

Daniel Brettig14-Feb-2013Josh Hazlewood will miss at least the first two matches for Australia A against the England Lions this month after his unfortunate litany of foot ailments was maintained during Australia’s Twenty20 loss to the West Indies in Brisbane on Wednesday night.Alister McDermott has been called up to replace Hazlewood for the two fixtures in Hobart, leaving Cricket Australia medical staff to determine whether he will be ready to return for the balance of the five-match series.Figures of 1 for 36 at the Gabba did not do full justice to Hazlewood, who impressed with his height and bounce, claiming the wicket of Chris Gayle. But the news that he has again suffered foot trouble will be a source of concern for the national selectors given their desire to ease him into a more regular place at international level.”Hazlewood suffered a foot injury during last night’s T20I in Brisbane and as a result has been withdrawn from the first two matches of the Australia A series,” A CA spokesman said. “A decision on his participation for the remaining fixtures will be determined once a further assessment has taken place.”At 22, Hazlewood is widely considered one of Australia’s most promising pace prospects, his height and disciplined line providing a contrast tot he swing and pace of James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins.However the selectors’ efforts to increase Hazlewood’s familiarity with the national team have been confounded numerous times by foot injuries. He was close to selection for the third Test against South Africa in Perth last year before a stress hot spot was located, keeping him out of the summer until the closing rounds of the Big Bash League.Last summer Hazlewood was also absent for long periods with a foot stress fracture. He debuted for Australia against England at Southampton in 2010 but in a first-class career that began in 2008 he has still played only 16 matches.

Gloucestershire have finally landed their man for the Friends Life t20 by signing Australian allrounder Dan Christian

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Mar-2013Gloucestershire have finally landed their man for the Friends Life t20 by signing Australian allrounder Daniel Christian.John Bracewell, Gloucestershire director of cricket, had expressed his frustration at not being able to seal a deal for an overseas player. He is targeting a place at finals day and it was essential that any signing would be available for the whole T20 competition.Christian, 29, will hope to help them to a first semi-final since 2007. He has played a handful of internationals, 17 ODIs and 11 T20Is for Australia, and has a good record in domestic T20 with almost 1,300 runs at a strike rate of 131.57 and a bowling average of 25.43.Christian is well-known to new Gloucestershire captain Michael Klinger, who also plays for South Australia. But it was with Brisbane Heat that Christian won the Big Bash League in January. He also won the Friends Life t20 with Hampshire in 2010 and was signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore for this season’s IPL.”I couldn’t be more pleased about signing Dan,” Bracewell said. “He is a power-hitter and a vicious competitor, as is the nature of the new breed of top T20 players, who want to win every ball. Dan will bat in our top four and can bowl in the middle of an innings and at the death. He is a hugely exciting recruit.””I am excited to be joining Gloucestershire,” Christian said. “Having played in 2010 for Hampshire, I have already had a taste of county cricket and I am really looking forward to playing in England again.”I have two months in India for the IPL prior to joining the club which will be great preparation ahead of the English T20. I look forward to joining John Bracewell, Michael Klinger and the rest of the boys in June and pulling on a Gloucestershire shirt for the first time.”

Leicestershire have signed Australia batsman Joe Burns as an overseas player for part of the 2013 county season

George Dobell07-Mar-2013Leicestershire have signed Australia batsman Joe Burns as an overseas player for part of the 2013 county season. Burns will stand in for Ramnaresh Sarwan once the latter leaves for international duty with West Indies.Burns, 23, scored 145 runs, including a century, for Australia A against the touring England Lions in February. He was voted the Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year by his fellow Australian players for his achievements in the 2012-13 season. All cricketers who have won the award since its inception in 2000 have gone on to represent Australia in at least one format. While Burns has yet to play international cricket, he can gain a work permit through a UK passport. He appeared briefly for Sussex second XI in 2010.Sarwan is expected to play the first five and last four Championship games of the season, leaving Burns to cover the middle of the campaign and the FLt20 competition. He will arrive on May 15 and leave on August 30 and his spell will comprise seven county championship games, the whole of the FLt20 competition and 11 CB40 matches.”I’ve heard great things about the club’s set-up and players and I am very motivated
with the ambition of promotion in the county championship,” Burns said. “I’m looking forward to joining up with the team in May and contributing to a successful and enjoyable
season.””We are delighted to have signed the up-and-coming batsman Joe Burns,” Leicestershire’s chief executive, Mike Siddall, said: “We are hoping he will have a similar impact at Grace Road as previous Australian overseas players, Brad Hodge and Michael Bevan. Joe is on the fringes of the Australian team and will be keen to impress during an Ashes year in England.”Leicestershire are expected to add another overseas player for the FLt20, with Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan believed to be a frontrunner for the role.

After his five-wicket haul on the first day in Roseau, offspinner Shane Shillingford has said the support shown by his team-mates and the management was indicative of his good work

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Mar-2013Much of West Indies’ control over Zimbabwe in the Test series so far has come through Shane Shillingford. With a five-wicket haul on the first day in Roseau, the offspinner has already taken his tally to 14 for the series. The support shown by his team-mates and the management, he said, was indicative of his good work.”(I’m) looking forward to even getting 12 in this match. Once I get the support from the captain, and the players as well, the coach and everybody, I know I’m doing a good job,” he said.Shillingford said that he changed his approach to bowling a little wide outside off stump to counter the sweep which was being employed by the right-handed batsmen.”For the right-handers, when they tried to sweep I tried not to bowl too straight but to bowl a little wider of the off-stump. I noticed they then changed their game plan. I felt our change of tactics worked quite well and we held them very tight. They had to look for other ways to score their runs.”His spell of 5 for 59 helped his side bowl Zimbabwe out for 175, 20 minutes after tea. In the only other Test he played here, against Australia last year, he took ten wickets.”Absolutely feels good, especially coming back home and performing. Coming straight from the first-class season, getting the first match and now the second match. It’s always a pleasure playing with home support and everything.”To be honest, every time West Indies come here, the guys are happy. Because they know the type of crowd they’re going to get. What I really appreciate is that Dominican people support good cricket.”But unlike Shillingford’s last Test here, the crowd is likely to see a West Indies victory this time round.

Alice Springs will host an international cricket team for the first time in 13 years after Cricket Australia announced England would play a tour match there during the 2013-14 Ashes

ESPNcricinfo staff07-May-2013Alice Springs will host an international cricket team for the first time in 13 years after Cricket Australia announced England would play a tour match there during the 2013-14 Ashes. Traeger Park is set to host a two-day game between England and the Cricket Australia’s Chairman’s XI on November 29 and 30 after the original venue, Manuka Oval in Canberra, had to withdraw due to scheduled resurfacing work.The last time an international team played in Alice Springs was when the West Indies side led by Jimmy Adams played a one-day match there against a Northern Territory Cricket Association Invitation XI in November 2000. The England game will take place after the first Ashes Test in Brisbane and before the second Test at Adelaide Oval.”When we were informed that Canberra could not host this year’s Chairman’s XI fixture, we wanted to bring the match to an iconic part of Australia,” Andrew Ingleton, CA’s executive general manager of game and market development, said. “Alice Springs, set against the backdrop of the MacDonnell Ranges, is an iconic part of our great country and an ideal setting for the game.”Matt Conlan, the Northern Territory’s minister for sport and recreation, said it was exciting for the territory to be part of the Ashes battle.”The Ashes is one of the biggest events in Australian sport and for Alice Springs to have a slice of the action in between the first and second Tests of this highly anticipated series is incredibly exciting,” he said. “It’s been 13 years since Traeger Park hosted an international cricket team and I’m delighted this drought we now be broken in November.”

Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming was frank in admitting his side was under extra pressure with the controversy surrounding the IPL

ESPNcricinfo staff25-May-2013Just like the administrators, big India players stayed away from making any contact with the media. On the eve of the IPL final, both sides sent out their coaches, and Michael Hussey, to address the delegation, a task traditionally handled by the teams’ captains. Stephen Fleming, the Super Kings coach, was quite frank in admitting the side was under extra pressure with the controversy engulfing the IPL.This press conference was a day after Super Kings’ former team principal, Gurunath Meiyappan, was arrested by the Mumbai Police for investigations into alleged betting. Fleming started by reading a prepared statement, insisting the players were not aware of any wrongdoings, and were playing to the best of their ability.”The players and support staff are distressed by the allegations and news reports against the CSK franchise, the IPL and Indian cricket,” Fleming read out. “We have played every match to the best of our ability, and we are very proud of our record of having appeared in the playoff stage of all six seasons of the IPL.”The players and support staff have no knowledge of either the betting, or the separate spot-fixing allegations. As difficult as it is, all our focus is on appearing in the final tomorrow.”Fleming didn’t deny the existence of the crisis. “It is a great record so far but we are up against a very good side in Mumbai,” Fleming said. “We have had some great battles against them this year.”I guess one of the other issues is what was involved in the statement. That puts more pressure on the side, but we welcome that. Chennai are a side that has risen through a lot of challenges. We are very proud to have come this far. We are very much looking forward to a big final.”Hussey, the leading run-getter this IPL season, was asked what role he played as a senior player in this situation. “We are just trying to focus on the game,” he said. “There is a lot of stuff going on in the periphery, and there can be distractions, but from a player’s point of view it is important we focus on our game and come out and give our best performance. If we can do that, we give ourselves a good chance to win.”The boys will be very excited to get on the ground tomorrow and put all the controversies behind us. I think it is going to be a fantastic match. It is a fitting finale for a great tournament.”

Cricket South Africa will interview three candidates, including former ICC chief Haroon Lorgat, for the chief executive’s job next week

Firdose Moonda10-Jul-2013Former ICC boss Haroon Lorgat is one of three candidates who will be interviewed by CSA for the position of CEO next week. The body has been without a permanent replacement for Gerald Majola since he was sacked last October although its leadership position has been fluid for the last 16 months, since Majola was suspended in March 2012.CSA has been through one acting boss, Jacques Faul, who is now in charge of the Titans franchise and are currently on their second. Naasei Appiah, the organisation’s CFO has been heading it since March this year as the timeline for appointing a CEO continues to shift.Initial talk out of CSA’s offices was that it would appoint its new CEO by April this year. In May, it announced that the process was still “running on schedule,” and the seat would be filled by the beginning of July. This has now been moved a third time.ESPNcricinfo understands one of the reasons for the delay was caused by difficulties in drawing up a shortlist. Despite receiving over 200 applications, CSA’s board was not satisfied with the overall calibre of the people who expressed interest in the job and extended the process to see if they could attract other candidates.Some of the contenders who are up against Lorgat are believed to be Bheki Shongwe, MD of Kaizer Chiefs, South Africa’s current football champions, university professor Denver Hendricks and head of Kagiso media Murphy Morobe. Previously Lorgat was understood to be competing with CSA’s cricket operations manager Mike Gajjar, Border Cricket CEO Thema Lupuwana and CSA’s transformation manager Max Jordaan and the concern was that the majority of candidates lacked significant business experience.Now, Lorgat remains the favourite but for a different reason: he could be the only one with extensive cricketing knowledge. Lorgat has been involved with South African cricket in the past, as convenor of selectors, ran the ICC for four years and has been involved at consultancy levels with Sri Lanka and Pakistan in recent months.The biggest obstacle to his challenge for the job appears to be from another cricketing country – India. The BCCI has made clear its preference that CSA does not appoint Lorgat because of the Indian board’s acrimonious history with him. Lorgat is believed to have irked the BCCI in his time at the ICC. As a result, India threatened to pull out of the upcoming tour to South Africa if Lorgat was given the job, according to CSA’s lead independent director Norman Arendse, who revealed the BCCI’s stance in March.CSA has since made public the fixtures for India’s tour to South Africa between November and January, which includes seven ODIs, two T20s and three Tests. India have objected to the itinerary, saying CSA released the schedule without the BCCI’s consent and that they would prefer fewer ODIs to give their players time off before they head to New Zealand.While the BCCI claim to have notified CSA of its grievances, CSA say it has not received any formal complaint. The already tense relationship between the two boards, who were previously on excellent terms, may only escalate as Lorgat moves closer to the top job.

Scotland improved their chances of World Cup qualification by defeating Kenya on Duckworth-Lewis

The Report by Callum Stewart in Aberdeen03-Jul-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsNeil Carter claimed three wickets on the first day to help restrict Kenya•ICC/Donald MacLeod

Scotland improved their chances of World Cup qualification by defeating Kenya on Duckworth-Lewis in a match that was completed on the reserve day due to poor weather. The win moved them above Netherlands into second place in the ICC’s WCL Championship, with the top two teams gaining automatic World Cup spots for 2015.After a nail-biting 12-run victory on Sunday, Scotland’s second win over Kenya was just as close but under very different circumstances. Captain Kyle Coetzer made a half-century before another rain interruption meant Scotland’s target was revised down to 139 from 35 overs. They got there with eight balls to spare but not without a few scares on the way.After Tuesday’s rain delay, the match continued with Scotland openers Coetzer and Freddie Coleman on 22-0 chasing 184 for victory, Kenya having been reliant on Tanmay Mishra’s 59 to give them a competitive total. However, what looked to be a straightforward task became a little harder when Coetzer was bowled for 57 by one that kept low. Three of the top four were bowled under their bat, and Matt Machan was caught at mid-off trying to accelerate the run-rate.The flurry of wickets gave Kenya hope but with the fall of Calum MacLeod, leaving Scotland 106 for 4, the rain started to fall again. Scotland were ahead by nine runs after 28.2 overs on D/L. When the players came off at 1.20pm, everyone thought that was it but just over an hour later the covers and sheets were removed with the rain still falling lightly. By 2.45pm, the players were back out and the rain had stopped.Calculations were made, leaving Scotland needing another 33 runs off 40 balls with their remaining six wickets. Some thought it was safe and some thought it was madness to return with a damp outfield but Scotland nerves grew when Preston Mommsen was caught behind after managing only 5, the requirement having risen to 22 off the final four overs.Rob Taylor didn’t hang about as he hit a quickfire 16 off eight balls, including a maximum off Ragheb Aga into the sight screen that just about saw Scotland home. He was caught trying to hit the winning runs but two more singles wrapped up victory by four wickets.Kenya’s innings began the day previously, with Scotland winning the toss and electing to field. Duncan Allan opened the batting for Kenya after being left out of the side for the previous game but could only make 18. His partner, Alex Obanda, was trapped lbw by Neil Carter for the second time in as many matches.Carter also got rid of Morris Ouma and Kenya’s captain Collins Obuya, in at No. 4 and playing his 100th ODI, spooned a leading edge to midwicket for 25. That was to be the second-highest score of the innings and the last boundary came in the 27th over, as Scotland bowled tight lines and fielded well on long boundaries. Mishra was again the only player to offer a decent tally as he scored his second consecutive fifty but Kenya were bowled out with 21 balls to spare.Netherlands, who play WCL Championship leaders Ireland in two crucial qualifiers next week in Amstelveen, are a point behind Scotland in third, while fourth-placed Afghanistan can make up the four-point gap when they play Namibia next month. Scotland have played 12 games, two games more than the rest, and have to take on Ireland in the final round of fixtures in September. Kenya, in fifth, cannot finish in the top two but will seek a measure of revenge in the first of two T20s in Aberdeen on Thursday.