MUNSEY AND LEASK POWER SCOTLAND TO VICTORY OVER ITALY
Scotland produced a dominant all-round display to beat Italy by 73 runs and get off the mark at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in Kolkata.
The Scots had suffered a 35-run defeat to West Indies on Saturday in their Group C opener, but bounced back in style on a baking hot day at Eden Gardens thanks to firstly a stellar batting effort, and then keeping cool heads with the ball, to record their first points of the competition. In doing so, they exacted sweet revenge on the Italians, seven months on from their dramatic victory at last summer's Europe Qualifier.
After being asked to bat first, Scotland racked up 207-4, the highest score of the tournament so far, led by Munsey's brutal 84 from 54 balls. He and Michael Jones (37) put on 126 for the first wicket inside fourteen overs, a T20 record for Scotland Men, before Brandon McMullen (41 from 18 balls) and Player of the Match Michael Leask (22 from 5 balls) added a spectacular final flourish as Italy wilted under pressure.
Leask and Munsey then made an impact in the field from ball one, as Justin Mosca slashed Leask's spin straight to backward point. Mark Watt and Brad Currie both picked up wickets in the powerplay, to leave Italy 54-3 after six overs.
Harry and Ben Manenti then built a stand of 74 through the middle overs, keeping up with rate of more than ten runs per over, before bowler Leask (4-17) and catcher Munsey combined again for a crucial blow in the thirteenth overs, with Harry holing out at long off. The Italian tail then collapsed, losing their last five wickets for five runs, as they finished 134-9, with captain Wayne Madsen unable to bat after dislocating his shoulder in the field.
Captain Richie Berrington said:
"I think it was really important we got over that 200 mark today, and we are pleased with the all round effort. Every game we go into looking to win, and this was really important today to bounce back from Saturday's result. It was a really strong performance and to get our first win in the tournament will give everyone a lot of confidence going forward, especially given the way we closed it out.
"It's been great to have two matches here at Eden Gardens, on two different but good batting tracks, and if it stays the same ahead of the weekend then we know it'll be difficult defending on this ground. We can take a lot from these two matches. Our fielding was excellent under pressure; defending a score we know how important that is in T20 cricket, and we took all our catches, so it was brilliant."
Next up for Scotland is a mouthwatering showdown on Valentine's Day against England, again in Kolkata. The game begins at 1500 (0930 UK) on Saturday.