Scotland maintain impressive start

Scotland maintained their 100% start to the ICC World Cricket League on Wednesday with a seven-run victory over Canada at Ruaraka.

When play eventually started - an hour later than scheduled due to a wet outfield - Scotland were put into bat and notable contributions from Fraser Watts (70), Gavin Hamilton (60 not out) and Dougie Brown (48 not out) helped them post 276 for four.

Canada, in response, stuttered at times but managed to claw their way up to 269 - thanks in the main to a gritty unbeaten 137 from man-of-the-match Ashish Bagai and 47 from Ashif Mulla.

Scotland headed into the meeting full of confidence after Tuesday's memorable last-ball win over Ireland, while the Canadians had slumped to an eight-wicket loss to the Netherlands.

The Scots had the further psychological advantage of having beaten the North Americans twice in the recent Mombasa tri-series.

Openers Watts and Majid Haq gave the Scots a solid start, although Haq rode his luck on more than one occasion.

He survived leg before wicket shouts from Anderson Cummins and Henry Osinde, and offered a difficult chance to first slip off Umar Bhatti which John Davison stopped, but could not hold. Cummins also had Haq caught by Ashif Mulla - off a no-ball.

Bhatti did make the breakthrough in the 16th over, having Haq caught by Davison for 27 to leave Peter Drinnen's side on 66 for one.

That brought Ryan Watson to the crease, and the Zimbabwe-born batsman was dropped by Don Maxwell - recalled to the side by coach Andy Pick in place of Desmond Chumney - off Osinde in the 23rd over.

Watson, Scotland's top-scorer during their victorious 2005 ICC Trophy campaign, went on to make 30 before being bowled by slow left-armer Sunil Dhaniram.

Watts passed the half-century mark and soon raced on, dispatching two generous full tosses to the boundary from Kevin Sandher's opening over.

The off-break of Davison finally accounted for Watts, lbw for 70 in the 37th over.

Neil McCallum, who hit 100 off 92 balls against the Irish, then joined Hamilton out in the middle but could not repeat Tuesday's heroics, falling cheaply as he lofted a Cummins delivery to Mulla at deep fine leg. Hamilton completed his 50 in style with a boundary and Dougie Brown smashed Cummins for two huge sixes from successive balls to keep Scotland's total ticking along nicely.

The pair shared an unbeaten stand of 97 as the Scots set Canada a testing target of 277 to win.

The Canadian reply got off to an uncomfortable start when Abdool Samad, in running for Davison's first single of the innings, collided with bowler Paul Hoffmann in his follow-through. Samad required several minutes' treatment, but quickly dispelled any doubts over his fitness by whacking Hoffmann for a magnificent six over deep square leg.

The first dismissal was that of Davison, completely missing an attempted drive off John Blain which resulted in him being clean bowled.

Singled out by coach Pick for showing a lack of discipline in throwing his wicket away against the Dutch, the Canada captain again fell cheaply - for four.

Hoffmann had two vociferous appeals for caught-behind decisions against Samad in the seventh and ninth overs, but both fell on deaf ears.

Samad and Bagai ran well between the wickets, taking every quick single on offer before two quick dismissals halted their charge.

Brown's slower ball trapped Samad lbw after he had made 32, and 91 for two became 92 for three minutes later when Qaiser Ali departed for a duck, again lbw but this time to Scotland skipper Craig Wright.

Mulla came in to join Bagai and the duo enjoyed a fruitful partnership of exactly 100 runs before the former became Wright's second victim, caught by Watts a matter of inches inside the boundary at deep square leg.

Wright then quickly sent Dhaniram on his way. After scoring seven, the Guyana-born player holed out to Blain at deep mid-wicket to leave Canada on 201 for five.

Bagai continued to battle away and deservedly past the three-figure mark - he went on to record the highest ever score by a Canadian in an ODI - but he was fast running out of partners. Maxwell was next to go, undone by the off-spin of Haq for three.

Bhatti and Cummins soon followed suit to leave Canada eight down, but with Bagai at the crease they were still in with half a chance.

However, requiring 13 from Brown's final over, Osinde was run out by the bowler after being sent back attempting a single that just wasn't there, and Canada ran out of overs.