World Cup Qualifiers, SCO vs UAE | Match Preview, Pitch Report, Predicted XIs, Fantasy Tips & Prediction

Scotland won their opening match against Ireland [Source: Twitter]

Match 12 of the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Qualifiers will see Scotland and United Arab Emirates (UAE) clash against each other in Group B encounter at Bulawayo Athletic Club in Bulawayo. Scotland will be high on confidence after beating a nail-biter against Ireland, while UAE will fight to stay alive in the competition having lost both their matches so far. 

Team Preview

Scotland

A late-order resistance and an extraordinary knock from Michael Leask, helped Scotland win a last-ball thriller against Ireland, chasing 287. Christopher McBride and Mark Watt contributed apart from Leask, while all others managed to get started, they failed to build on it. 

Scotland will want to ensure they suffer no collapse against UAE, who despite having lost both their matches, have been good with the ball.

Brandon McMullen claimed his maiden ODI fifer in Scotland's opening match, as others got knocked around for runs. The likes of Chris Sole and Safyaan Sharif need to pull up their socks quickly.

United Arab Emirates (UAE)

UAE are winless in the tournament thus far [Source: Twitter]

UAE in both their matches, failed mainly with the bat, as they could not chase against Sri Lanka, and failed to set a target against Oman. Apart from wicket-keeper Vriitya Aravind and Aayan Afzal Khan, no other UAE batters looked in prime touch. Muhammed Waseem and Rohan Mustafa will be expected to come to the party with time running out for qualification. 

The bowling, however, has been decent with almost all bowlers claiming wickets, with Junaid Siddique spearheading them.

Their plethora of bowling all-rounders have been in business, with Ali Naseer, Aayan, and Mustafa claiming seven wickets between them.

Match Details

Date and Time: June 22, 12:30 PM IST

Venue: Bulawayo Athletic Club, Bulawayo

Live Broadcast and Streaming: Star Sports Network & Disney+Hotstar

Pitch Report: The track at Bulawayo Athletic Club has so far produced one low and one high-scoring encounter, where both times team chasing ended up winning the encounter. Overall, the track is on the batter's side, which hardly shows any wear and tear across both innings.

Probable Playing XIs​

Scotland: Matthew Cross (wk), Christopher McBride, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Richie Berrington (c), Tomas Mackintosh, Michael Leask, Chris Greaves, Mark Watt, Safyaan Sharif, and Chris Sole

UAE: Muhammad Waseem (c), Rohan Mustafa, Vriitya Aravind (wk), Basil Hameed, Asif Khan, Rameez Shahzad, Ali Naseer, Aayan Afzal Khan, Karthik Meiyappan, Zahoor Khan, and Junaid Siddique

Cricket Exchange Fantasy Tips

Wicketkeeper: Vriitya Aravind

Batters: Christopher McBride, Mark Watt, Aayan Afzal Khan, Rameez Shahzad

All-Rounders: Michael Leask, Ali Naseer

Bowlers: Brandon McMullen, Rohan Mustafa, Junaid Siddique, Chris Greaves

Captain: Vriitya Aravind

Vice-Captain: Michael Leask

Prediction

Scotland are overwhelming favourites against UAE, who are fighting for survival in the tournament.

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