The thrill of going toe-to-toe with Australia in the Caribbean with a World Cup Super 8s place on the line will feel like a lifetime ago when the Scotland men’s team returns to the cricketing arena this morning.
Doug Watson’s side performed so valiantly in that tournament – starting with a thumping batting performance against England before the rain intervened – and won a clutch of new admirers with wins over Namibia and Oman and a narrow loss to Australia before exiting on the equivalent of goal difference, net run rate.
Life as an ICC Associate member nation isn’t all glamour, however, which is why the Scots will return to the fray today in Broughty Ferry for the start of a World Cricket League 2 tri-series against familiar foes, Namibia and Oman.
It must be tough mentally for those players who starred in St Lucia and battled hard in Barbados to raise themselves for four matches against lesser lights but motivation will stem from the very purpose of this tournament which is to try to qualify for the 2027 50-over World Cup.
“It’s always tough to come back from a World Cup when you wanted to do more and get to the next stage,” admits bowler Mark Watt. “But the guys have had plenty of time to dust ourselves off and have a bit of a mental break. Now we’re ready to get back into the swing of it.
“We did ourselves no harm in the World Cup against the bigger nations. We went full guns blazing and showed the whole world how good we can be against the top-tier sides. We were disappointed not to get over the line against Australia and the fact we’re even saying that shows we’ve come on leaps and bounds.
“The games this week are part of the journey to what we hope will be another World Cup appearance and it’s a great opportunity for some of the younger lads coming in to try to solidify their position in the squad over the next couple of years. It will be really exciting to see how they go.”
That Australia match may have ended in defeat but the delight Watt took at bowling both Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis hasn't yet dissipated. Australia are due in Edinburgh for a rematch of sorts in September and the Heriot’s bowler is already eagerly looking forward to causing more mischief with the ball in hand.
“I did enjoy those wickets, yeah,” he laughs. “When you’re playing against Australia in a World Cup you’ve got to enjoy moments like that, especially the one against Maxwell. That was nice. It’s brilliant that we’ll have matches against them at home soon, too. This is what we’ve been asking for for years, to get the bigger nations here. We’ll look forward to that when it comes around but we’ve got business to attend to here first.”
This is shaping up to be a busy summer for Watt. After performing with Scotland this week, he will hastily head south to join his Oval Invincible team-mates for The Hundred. Given he was playing golf when the draft was made, it is fair to say the 27-year-old wasn't expecting to get the call.
“I honestly had no clue about it,” he admits. “I was at the driving range and started getting messages of congratulations from some of my ex-teammates at Derbyshire. I was wondering what for! I hadn’t realised the draft was even on that day so I was in a bit of shock. But I’m absolutely delighted to get the chance to play in that tournament.
“I’ve been in chats with the Oval and they’ve been really good about me playing for Scotland first. They know how passionate I am about that. So, I won’t be joining up for the start of The Hundred. I’ll play the first few games here and take it from there. The Oval is one of the grounds I’ve not played at it so I’m really looking forward to that chance when it comes around.”
One of Watt’s key strengths over the years has been his constant ability to keep batters guessing. A favourite trick is to throw in a longer delivery from 24 or 25 yards, a tool that has drawn many an opponent into a costly false shot.
He was controversially denied a World Cup wicket in such a fashion against Oman when batter Khalid Kail pulled out of the shot, resulting in a dead ball rather than another scalp, much to Watt’s evident frustration. But it won’t be disappearing from his armoury any time soon.
“The ICC had a chat with our manager Kenny [Crichton] about it,” Watt reveals. “They pretty much said that it’s a batter’s game so stop doing it! But it’s something I’ve been working on for ages so if umpires want to give it as a dead ball that’s fine. That doesn’t bother me too much. I’m still going to do it. I just need the batters to play at it and it’s a legal delivery.
“I’m going to continue to do it and put umpires under a bit more pressure by celebrating if the batter leaves it and it hits the stumps. I want batters to have to keep thinking about it when I come in to bowl as that’s always been a mental win for myself.”
