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Scotland announces squad for Commonwealth Games Qualifier

Cricket Scotland have announced a 14-player squad for the upcoming Commonwealth Games Qualifier in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia later this month.

Scotland’s squad will be led by Lightning and Trent Rockets all-rounder Kathryn Bryce, with younger sister and wicketkeeper Sarah Bryce deputising. The squad of 14 has one uncapped player in Northern Diamonds seam-bowler Rachel Slater.

Following a 2021 in which Scotland defeated full-members Ireland to advance from the European regional qualifiers for the 2023 T20 World Cup, the Scotland team are high on confidence in the lead-up to their next challenge. Speaking in a Cricket Scotland press release, Scotland captain Kathryn Bryce said:

“We’re really looking forward to testing ourselves against teams like Sri Lanka and Bangladesh who’ve been near the top of the world stage for a long time. We’ve seen some good progression during our preparation for the tournament so far and while we know it’s going to be challenging, I believe that we are ready and we are going into the tournament with the goal of winning.”

Scotland will be joined at the Commonwealth Games qualifier by hosts Malaysia, Kenya, and full members Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The five teams will compete in a single round-robin between 18^th and 24^th January, with the tournament winner qualifying for the Commonwealth Games. All matches at the qualifier will have T20I status.

The qualifier winner will face New Zealand, South Africa, and hosts England in the group stages of the main event. The matches will be played at Edgbaston in Birmingham between 29^th July and 7^th August. Australia, India, Pakistan, and Barbados will also participate in the event.