Men’s T20 World Cup: Scotland excited to meet England & Australia in Group B
Scotland captain Richie Berrington is looking forward to a “great occasion” against defending champions England at the Men’s T20 World Cup on 4 June.
Australia, Namibia and Oman are the other opponents in Group B, with all of Scotland’s matches in the Caribbean as West Indies and United States co-host.
The top two from four groups progress to the Super Eight phase.
Scotland have never played England in an official T20 but did win the last one-day international meeting in 2018.
“It’s a great draw for us to play, in England and Australia, two of the best teams in the world, so as a squad we are really excited about that,” said Berrington.
“It’s a great opportunity for us, especially at a World Cup. Namibia and Oman are two excellent sides as well, which we’ve had great battles with over the years.
“As we know with these tournaments, a lot of the time on your day, if you have a good day anything is possible. As a squad, we want to keep building on the success we’ve had, particularly in T20 cricket, so this is another great opportunity for us to do this on the world stage.
“The game against England in 2018 was a special day for everyone involved and I think for everyone in Scottish cricket. It was one of the best atmospheres I’ve been involved in during my career with Scotland, to have the crowd behind us like that at home.
“It’ll be an exciting game for us first up in the group, and hopefully we’ll get a few people travelling out to the Caribbean to support us as well, so it should be a great occasion against the defending champions.”
Scotland, competing at their sixth T20 World Cup, are currently searching for a head coach.
Doug Watson left the role he held on an interim basis in June after steering the team to top spot in the European T20 World Cup Qualifier and narrowly missing out on a place at the 50-over World Cup.
“On the whole it’s been a positive year for us as a squad, with a lot to take away from it,” added Berrington.
“Winning the Cricket World Cup League 2 and playing in Nepal was really special. The guys took a lot of belief from that campaign, which was spread across more than three years, and that took us nicely into the two World Cup qualifying campaigns.”
“The 50-over World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe was a great experience, with a couple of big wins there against Zimbabwe and West Indies, but it was obviously hugely disappointing not to get over the line in the last game, which would have taken us to the World Cup.
“For me, one of the highlights of the year was the way the team bounced back from that disappointment very quickly, heading into the T20 Qualifier.
“To go and win that here in Scotland as tournament hosts was very special and something that we can look to build on.”
T20 World Cup groups
Group A: India, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, USA
Group B: England, Australia, Namibia, Scotland, Oman
Group C: New Zealand, West Indies, Afghanistan, Uganda, Papua New Guinea
Group D: South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Nepal
Scotland fixtures
4 June: v England, Kensington Oval, Barbados
6 June: v Namibia, Kensington Oval, Barbados
9 June: v Oman, Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua
15 June: v Australia, Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, St Lucia
