New Delhi, Aug 14 (IANS): Scotland have included pacers Charlie Cassell and Jasper Davidson in their 17-man squad for their men’s T20I series against Australia, starting in Edinburgh next month. This will be the first men’s bilateral T20I series between the two teams.
Cassell made headlines by picking 7-21 in his first international game - the best men’s ODI figures on debut - against Oman in the Cricket World Cup League 2 match in July. In that same game, Davidson also made his ODI debut and took four wickets.
“I’m hugely excited. It’s a wonderful opportunity to play one of the best teams in the world, and I’m pretty sure that our players won’t need any motivation for this series. It’s a great opportunity for them to share the field with world-class players. They’re wanting to put in some huge performances and compete, and really push this Australia team.”
“After coming into the squad at CWCL2 and doing so well, it'll be great for Jasper and Charlie to have the experience of what it’s like playing against the best, in front of a fairly large crowd. I think the key thing is the guys are really competing for places.”
“I’ve got to mention Oli Hairs, who didn’t play at the World Cup, but then made that brilliant 255 for Scotland "A" against Oman. It truly was a fantastic innings, he hit the ball so well, and it was so good to see him at his best,” said Doug Watson, Scotland men’s head coach.
Scotland, captained by Richie Berrington, and Australia had met in St Lucia at this year’s ICC Men's T20 World Cup, where the latter won a thrilling match by five wickets. The three T20Is will be played at The Grange on September 4, 6 and 7 respectively.
"The goal for us is to win this series. The first game is really important – if we can win that, it’ll set up the next two matches. The whole week will be brilliant for the squad, staff, supporters, and all of Scotland," added Watson.
Scotland squad: Richie Berrington (C), Charlie Cassell, Matthew Cross, Bradley Currie, Jasper Davidson, Chris Greaves, Oli Hairs, Jack Jarvis, Michael Jones, Michael Leask, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole, Charlie Tear, Mark Watt, Bradley Wheal