Cricket: Scotland’s good knock against Surrey is all in vain

On a miserable day in London, the Saltires had recovered from 46-4 to reach 124 and, with Jean Symes and Preston Mommsen going strong, looked on course for a challenging total.

Instead the match was called-off after just twenty-three overs, leaving the Scots with just one win from the first seven fixtures of their 12-game campaign.

With rain forecast and the possibility of the Duckworth-Lewis method coming into play, their decision to bat first, while ultimately irrelevant, had looked debatable. It became even more questionable as Surrey’s formidable new-ball pairing of Jade Dernbach and Stuart Meaker took advantage of the overcast conditions to put the Saltires in deep trouble.

Meaker, generating genuine pace, was first to strike when Calum MacLeod could only glove a wickedly lifting delivery to Steven Davies.

Fellow England bowler Dernbach upstaged his colleague by claiming two scalps in one over as Scotland’s woes intensified.

Josh Davey, struggling for his timing, miscued a drive to Jon Lewis at mid-on before Craig Wallace, promoted up the order, was trapped in front for a duck.

At 23-3, repairs were needed but Ewan Chalmers’ return to the Saltires side was a short-lived one. The Watsonians batsman, who last took part in a CB40 match more than a year ago, had been flown down as a replacement for Richie Berrington who sustained a hand injury during Monday’s defeat against Hampshire.

Chalmers had at least made it into double figures with a succession of singles but he was unable to build on his start, instead offering a return catch to Murali Kartik, Surrey’s recently-arrived overseas star.

Kartik, though, was to prove expensive as Symes and Mommsen provided the re-building job Scotland so badly needed.

The Indian left-armer leaked 44 runs in six overs while fellow spinner Gareth Batty also came in for some punishment. Symes led the way with two boundaries in Kartik’s first over as the South African moved towards his second substantial innings in Saltires colours. He reached his half-century from just 46 deliveries with seven boundaries, one of them a well-executed reverse sweep off Batty.

Symes then greeted Meaker’s return to the attack with a superb cut that soared over the rope at backward point.

Mommsen, too, was typically aggressive, his unbeaten 30 coming at almost a run a ball.

The pair had carried the Saltires to 124-4 when rain brought a premature end, leaving Symes stranded on 58 when a second century of the campaign looked a distinct possibility.

Scotland will now prepare for next month’s internationals with Canada before returning to CB40 action against Somerset at Taunton on 15 July.