Brown shows true colours as Scotland prepares for WCL Division 1

Dougie Brown © Getty Images

Contrary to what they might tell you in Glasgow, Edinburgh or Aberdeen, where January is not exactly the warmest, driest month of the year, the sun is always shining on the Scotland cricketers these days.

In the build-up for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 in the West Indies, the Scots are to all intents and purposes full-time players, able to follow the good weather around the world and avoid the sleet and snow of home.

But the hard graft of year-round cricket is not easy and results of late have not been all that coach Peter Drinnen would have hoped for. Two heavy defeats in Bangladesh in December - Scotland's first ODI series outside of Britain - a disappointing draw in the four-day ICC Intercontinental Cup against the United Arab Emirates in Sharjah and a forgettable start to a tri-series in Mombasa have put a dampener on things, despite the sunshine.

But as the ICC World Cricket League Division 1 in Nairobi draws near, followed by the big one - the ICC Cricket World Cup - in the Caribbean in March, the Scots are confident they can turn it around and peak at the right time.

"We are learning a lot during this tour," says vastly experienced all-rounder Dougie Brown.

"We are trying to form good partnerships out in the middle when batting, we want to bowl well in tandem and we are also working hard on our fielding. So far, it hasn't really come together but we are learning a lot about each other from being on an extended tour," he said.

Brown (37) was a one-day player for England during the late 1990s before returning to play for his native Scotland. He was involved in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003 as a coach of Namibia but is glad now to be back in the thick of things as a player.

"I guess I am doing things the wrong way around - having been at the World Cup as a coach, I am now coming back as a player. It's fantastic. I am really looking forward to the challenge. It's a great opportunity for us all and I hope that the experience that I have gained over the years will help the team do well in the West Indies."

It certainly will be a challenge. Winning the ICC Trophy 2005 put Scotland into a group with Australia, South Africa and the Netherlands. With only two teams qualifying for the next round, it is not hard to say who the underdogs are.

Navdeep Poona © Getty Images

"We're not kidding ourselves but if we can go out there and put in some good performances and some youngster watching back home decides to take up cricket rather than football or rugby on the strength of that, then we have done a good job for the game in Scotland," said Brown.

"Also, if that entices sponsors to get involved then we have done our jobs. We have a very good infrastructure in Scottish cricket and some excellent players. We need some young blood to come into the game to take over once we have moved on and we continually need sponsors to come on board and enable squads to go away on winter tours and improve.

"We are very much on the starting block at the moment but it is an exciting time for cricket in Scotland and we are all looking forward to the World Cricket League, which is going to be great preparation for the World Cup," he added.

The Scotland team has plenty of experience to call on. Apart from Brown, left-handed batsman Gavin Hamilton also has benefited from playing for England as well as first-class county cricket with Durham and Yorkshire, while Ryan Watson, skipper Craig Wright and Fraser Watts have been to the fore for some time.

Meanwhile, there are some youngsters coming through, staking their claim for a starting place in the West Indies. Navdeep Poonia has been impressing with his hard-hitting batting. The 20-year-old Glaswegian is on the books at Warwickshire and looks to be a bright prospect. He made 73 off just 68 balls at the top of the innings in an improved all-round performance for Scotland today (Thursday) in an ODI against Canada in Mombasa.

Off-spinner Majid Haq (23), fast-medium bowler Dewald Nel (26) and left-arm finger spinner Ross Lyons (22) could well form the nucleus of the Scotland attack in the coming seasons.

One thing is for sure: no matter how well Scotland does in the upcoming WCL Div. 1 and ICC Cricket World Cup, it will be a steep learning curve for the team's future stars.

Scotland (WCL Div. 1 squad): Craig Wright (captain), John Blain, Dougie Brown, Gavin Hamilton, Majid Haq, Paul Hoffmann, Dougie Lockhart, Ross Lyons, Neil McCallum, Dewald Nel, Navdeep Poonia, Glenn Rogers, Colin Smith (wicketkeeper), Ryan Watson, Fraser Watts.

For latest, live updates of Scotland's matches during the ongoing tri-series with Canada and Kenya in Mombasa, go to

The WCL Div. 1 involves the top six Associate teams As the six teams in this competition have all qualified for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007, the WCL Div. 1 is being used as part of their preparations for the event, which opens in Jamaica on 11 March.

But the WCL is about much more than that. Firstly, all games in the tournament carry ODI status so players are competing for their place in the historical analysis of top level one-day cricket. And secondly, the top two teams from this year's WCL will qualify for the inaugural ICC Twenty20 World Championships, which is scheduled for South Africa in September.

The idea of the WCL is to give regular global one-day cricket opportunities to the top 18 non-Test countries. Apart from Division 1, the next eight best from the ICC Trophy 2005 have been allocated to Division 2 and 3 events later in 2007 along with the top teams from five regional qualifying events.

Promotion and relegation will be possible between divisions as each team seeks to move up the world cricket rankings. Events for Divisions 4 and 5 will commence in 2008 as the WCL expands.

This gives each of the 87 Associate and Affiliate Members a clearly defined pathway to progress and develop in world cricket. Every side can now make its own plan as to how it will some day take its place alongside the very best at the ICC Cricket World Cup. It also means that the ICC can identify the relative strengths of these member countries on a more regular basis than ever before.

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