Scotland rally to challenge England

Just a few days after experienced seamer John Blain threatened to wreck their tournament by walking out after a furious row with captain Gavin Hamilton, Scotland demonstrated the great resolve within their ranks by reaching 136 for five at Trent Bridge.

Facing an England side without James Anderson and Graeme Swann, who were rested as a precaution against ankle and back niggles respectively, Scotland looked set for a humiliating score after winning the toss and deciding to bat.

They took 11 balls to even register their first runs off the bat and struggled to reach 41 for two in the eighth over in front of a dismal crowd discouraged by prices of £15-£20 and £8 for kids under 16.

But a spirited 62-run third wicket stand off 41 balls between Kyle Coetzer and Colin Smith gave Scotland the momentum to register a far bigger total than they had earlier threatened.

Hampshire all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas had restricted Scotland from the start, delivering a maiden with the opening over and bowling opener Fraser Watts in his next.

Hamilton attempted to make amends from the sluggish start and hit Mascarenhas for the first six of the innings over long on, but fell to Yorkshire leg-spinner Adil Rashid on the mid-wicket boundary. His demise brought Coetzer and Smith together, who seized on the opportunity to attack England's spin pairing of Rashid and Kevin Pietersen in the middle overs of their innings.

Rashid, a surprise replacement for the injured Andrew Flintoff in England's squad, should have had Coetzer stumped by James Foster for 22 but square leg official Amish Saheba ruled against the appeal and did not have the option of a third umpire because this match is not a full international.

Coetzer immediately punished that error by hitting Rashid's next ball for six in an over which cost 17 runs as Scotland accelerated towards three figures.

Durham batsman Coetzer fell when he picked out Pietersen at long on attempting to hit England captain Paul Collingwood over the top after hitting 34 off 34 balls, but wicketkeeper Smith went on to hit a superb 45 off 32 balls, which included four fours and a six before he gave Collingwood a return catch with just three overs of the innings remaining.