BRANDON MCMULLEN ON FRANCHISE SUCCESS, AND A BIG SUMMER AHEAD

After a winter of franchise action, Brandon McMullen is raring to go in a Scotland shirt ahead of a big summer – containing three ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 series as well as the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier.

 

First though, is a pre-season tour to Zimbabwe, where the Scots will face Zimbabwe Academy and Zimbabwe ‘A’ sides in preparation for an important six months.

 

“We’re buzzing for the Zimbabwe trip, to get out in the sun again, get together as a group and spend some quality time together, training hard,” said McMullen.

 

“It's a super exciting summer for the team, for the country, and for Cricket Scotland. It’s going to be fantastic with the amount of cricket, it’s back-to-back which is exciting for us as players.

 

“Hopefully we can build momentum going forward from the start of the summer into the qualifiers in the Netherlands, which is a super opportunity to ultimately qualify for the 2026 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, and the boys are all really excited.”

 

 

After a 2024 in which the all-rounder starred at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, and then against Australia on home soil, the winter brought franchise opportunities in Nepal and the UAE.

 

“It was fantastic to be away for a couple of months at the different franchise competitions, in Nepal and Dubai, and it was a fantastic experience, with a hell of a lot of learnings from those two tournaments.”

 

“The Nepal Premier League was amazing, and the crowds were incredible. 25,000 people screaming and shouting from nine o'clock in the morning was just spectacular, and it was really cool to be a part of it.”

 

A finalist in the Nepal Premier League with the Sudurpaschim Royals, McMullen went one better in the ILT20, as his Dubai Capitals side lifted the title in February.

 

 

“I was rubbing shoulders with some superstars along the way at that event, and it was awesome to be working with some great coaches and players, learning from them and seeing how they go about their own games, and it was an absolute bonus to win the win the competition for the first time!

 

“You’re just trying to learn the ins and outs of how they go about their own games, what the similarities are to what we do here in Scotland, and any differences in how they work that allow them to perform at the highest level.

 

“Hopefully I can bring it back here, share those experiences with the team here, and ultimately get better from it.”