Scotland beaten by Ireland and lose the T20 series 3-1

Scotland fell to a third successive T20 defeat against Ireland to lose the series 3-1 in Belfast.

Megan McColl scored 30 from 29 balls, including a six, as Scotland lost to Ireland in Belfast in the fourth and final match of the T20 series.

Having won the first match on Monday, the Scots could not maintain their form over the course of the week, losing the next three in what were their first international outings in 18 months.

Needing a win to draw the series, they fell to a six-wicket defeat .

Scotland captain Kathryn Bryce, who won the toss and elected to bat, was the high point among Scotland’s top order, scoring 22 from 21 balls, but following her dismissal Scotland slumped to 57-7.

It fell to 20-year-old Megan McColl to form a partnership with Sam Haggo who was playing with stitches in her leg after sustaining a shin injury in Wednesday’s defeat.

McColl scored 30 from 29 balls, including a six, as the Scots finished the innings on 99 for seven, their best batting score of the week.

But the hosts proved too strong for the Wildcats, with opener Gaby Lewis scoring 49 from 40 and captain Laura Delaney posting 27 to lead the Irish home in 13.5 overs.

Scotland head coach Mark Coles said: “It was great that we took a game off Ireland, and I thought that they played pretty well.

“I think there are a lot of times where we played well in patches but didn’t play well enough for long enough, so that’s a real focus for us. We need to put away more bad balls that we get bowled. But it’s been great to see the team play for the first time in 600 days, and we have some positives that we can work on.”

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