Cricket World Cup League 2: Scotland recover from shaky start to beat Dutch

Scotland bounced back from their surprise defeat by Nepal on Monday with a convincing 44-run win over the Netherlands in Dundee.

Having been asked to bat first, Scotland slumped to 97-6 but were indebted to the efforts of number five batter Finlay McCreath, who made 81 off 106 deliveries.

McCreath put on 91 for the seventh wicket with Mark Watt, who chipped in with 60 from 72 balls.

Some lusty late-order hitting from Safyaan Sharif (36*) helped the hosts reach 262-9 from their 50 overs, a total the Netherlands were unable to chase down.

Two wickets with the new ball for Brandon McMullen began the second innings in fine fashion for Scotland and the Netherlands continued to lose wickets at regular intervals.

Sharif, Watt and Jasper Davidson all finished with two scalps as the Netherlands were bowled out for 218 in 45 overs.

“We didn’t get off to the start we wanted, but the composure young Finlay McCreath showed today was great to see,” Scotland captain Richie Berrington said.

“It’s not how we want our batting innings to unfold, but the pleasing thing is a few different people stood up.

“It’s great that we have options to go to with the ball at different stages.”

Scotland – who have 10 wins from 18 CWCL2 matches – next face Nepal on Sunday before taking on the Netherlands again on 12 June.