Sports Desk :
Ruben Trumpelmann led a lethal bowling show by taking three wickets in the first over as Namibia restricted Scotland to 109 for eight in the Twenty20 World Cup on Wednesday, reports AFP.
The left-arm quick justified his team’s decision to bat first in Abu Dhabi as he struck with the first ball and then got two in successive balls including Richie Berrington for nought.
Berrington, who was standing in as captain with regular skipper Kyle Coetzer out nursing a finger injury, reviewed the call but replays suggested the ball would have hit the leg stump.
The opening over provided a stunning start for a team, ranked a lowly 19, that stormed into the their first ever Super 12s of the tournament after wins over Netherlands and Ireland in the qualifying stage.
Trumpelmann returned his T20 best figures of 3-17 in his sixth international in the shortest format.
David Wiese trapped Craig Wallace lbw for four to rattle Scotland, who lost their Super 12 opener to Afghanistan by 130 runs.
At one stage Wednesday, the Scots were 18-4.
Opener and wicketkeeper-batsman Matthew Cross attempted to stem the rot with Michael Leask but another left-arm fast medium Jan Frylinck bowled him for 19. Cross took 33 balls for the effort.
Leask played a lone hand with his 44 off 27 deliveries before being bowled by JJ Smit.
The bowlers kept up the pressure in the final few overs with Frylinck returning figures of 2-10 from his four overs. Chris Greaves made 25 and was run out on the final ball of the innings.
Meanwhile, A disciplined Namibia restricted Scotland to a below-par 109 for eight after opting to bowl in a Group 2 Super 12 match of the ICC World Cup here on Wednesday.
Michael Leask top-scored for Scotland with a 27-ball 44, while Chris Greaces made 25.
Ruben Trumpelmann was the best bowler for Namibia with figures of three for 17, while Jan Flrylinck (2/10) picked up two wickets.
Brief Scores: Scotland: 109 for 8 in 20 overs (Michael Leask 44; Ruben Trumpelmann 3/17).
Earlier, Namibia bowled splendidly at either end of the innings to restrict Scotland to a below-par total of 109/8. Scotland suffered an early setback as Ruben Trumpelmann’s triple-strike in the first over pegged them back.
Only Matthew Cross, Michael Leask and Chris Greaves reached double-digits for Scotland, with Leask leading the way in the middle-overs with a 27-ball 44.
Michael Leask and Matthew Cross batted smartly to steady the ship, though boundaries were hard to come by, given their cautious approach. Leask scored two boundaries out of Scotland’s three in the first 10 overs, taking on Wiese both times.
After the drinks break, Leask took the attack to Michael van Lingen, smashing him for a four and six. The 39-run partnership finally came to an end, with Frylinck cleaning up Cross with the slower ball.
