Scotland give it another good go

Scotland's stunning start to their National League season suffered a setback today at The Grange, when Derbyshire beat them by six wickets in a rain-affected match. But it was by no means a walkover for Derbyshire, as Scotland continued to show that they can handle life with the big boys.

Jon Kent led the way for Scotland with a gutsy 85 from 93 balls as Scotland reached 206 all out from 44 overs. Conditions then got worse as Derbyshire's innings was altered to 139 from 27 overs, and despite a blazing 35 from 19 balls from Shahid Afridi, they were never comfortable chasing the runs. And when Michael Di Venuto was out for 5 and the score was 67 for 2, Scotland felt they could be in with a shout, especially in the appauling weather.

However, Dominic Hewson, who had earlier taken 4 for 25, settled Derbyshire's nerves and guided them home with five overs to spare, smashing 29 from 18 balls in an unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 44 runs with Chris Bassano.