Scotland sign off Shane Burger era with silverware despite defeat in Nepal thriller

Scotland lost by two wickets to Nepal in their final ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 match in Kirtipur.

Scotland won ICC Division 2 despite ending the series with defeat by hosts Nepal. Pic: Ian Jacobs

The Scots, who had already secured top place in the section last week and picked up their trophy for their success, batted first at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground and ran up 212. George Munsey was the top scorer with 60 while Matthew Cross reached 42 and Brandon McMullen scored 31, as Sandeep Lamichhane took four wickets. Captain Rohit Paudel drove his side towards victory when it was Nepal’s turn to bat. Mark Watt took three wickets for 29 but Paudel was 95 not out as Nepal reached 213 for eight with 35 balls remaining.

This was the final match for Scotland under the guidance of head coach Shane Burger, who will now take up a role with Somerset. The South African’s four-year tenure included guiding the team to the Super 12s stage of the 2021 T20 World Cup in Oman, with the search continuing for his replacement.

Scotland captain Richie Berrington said on the match against the Nepalese: “It was a great occasion and a great game of cricket. There were moments in that game where we could have found ways to win it, but unfortunately we didn’t quite do enough in the end. To get ourselves into a position to potentially win we had done things better than in the previous two games and the guys were very disciplined and stuck to their jobs. A lot of credit has to go to the Nepal captain Rohit for getting his team over the line with an excellent knock.

Richie Berrington receives the trophy. Pic: Ian Jacobs

“In general, there are so many positives to take from this trip. There were a lot of good individual performances, the young guys have come in and shown our depth and as a team we stood up well to the challenges of the different conditions and playing in front of some amazing crowds. This trip will stand us in good stead for what is ahead.”

Scotland are next in action in June for the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe.