Ireland and Scotland occupy the first two places in the scoreboard with two wins from as many games.
Nathan McGuire shows an all-round performance with a century, two wickets and two catches to lead Ireland to victory over Denmark
Scottish spinner Charlie Peet rolls over Jersey with a 7-wicket turn
Dutch kicker Vikramjit Singh scored 133 points and prevailed over France
Heavy rain overnight and thunderstorms in the Netherlands threatened to affect the second round of the ICC U19 European Cricket World Cup qualifier in 2019, but the rain cleared and the covers held to ensure that all matches started on time.
In Rotterdam, Ireland won the litter and decided to beat Denmark to continue his good form. Opener Nathan McGuire (105 runs) quickly adapted to the conditions, bumping into 16 limits on his way to a century in 36 overs. Denmark battled back with regular wickets but could not stop the Irish side from reaching an impressive 278 for 6 wickets. A late rush by Tim Tector, who hit 54 * with only 39 balls, contributed to the event’s highest ever result.
Denmark already showed a positive intention at the beginning of the reply when the second ball of the innings sailed across the border for six. The disciplined Irish side retaliated on the next ball with a wicket. The Irish pitchers kept up the pressure on the Danish fighters, keeping the hit rate low and taking wickets at regular intervals.
Irish spinner Mitchell Thompson scored four times on a Turning wicket to defuse Denmark’s persecution. Nathan McGuire (2-46 / 10) ended his all-round appearance for Ireland with two wickets. Jonathan Garth (2-22 / 8) and Jamie Forbes (2-18 / 6.5) both contributed two goals each in their economic spells. Denmark was stranded at 146 with 44 overs, far from the Irish target.
In Voorburg, the hosts of the Netherlands brought out a point against France following their narrow defeat by Scotland the previous day. The Dutch won the litter and decided for the stroke. They were initially cautious in overcast conditions, eager to play the new ball and watch for the strike in the first hour of play.
The left-hander Vikramjit Singh (133 runs) finished half a century against Scotland with a beautiful century against France, whirling the ball around for singles and twos and occasionally throwing powerful blows to the floor with growing self-confidence. Shirase Rasool (34 runs) and Kevin van der Geest (47 runs) made contributions to partnerships worth 80 runs and 141 runs at the other end. A late flood of wickets in the last two overs strengthened the confidence of the French outfitters, but failed to prevent the Netherlands from scoring an impressive 266 for 7.
France struggled with patience for the first 10 overs, but it was the introduction of the spin bowler after the completion of the power game that turned the screws to the French batters. Leg-spinner Phillipe Boissevain scored only 3 runs in his 4-over game, while off-spinners Pierre Jacod (5-14 / 9) and Aryan Dutt (4-15 / 3.5) sparked a devastating bowling.
With the hit of 50 in the 25th round came to a collapse, which brought France from 50/4 to 50/9 within eight balls. Some enterprising shots from the lower French division scored 60 before the last wicket fell, giving the Netherlands a sizeable victory of 206 runs.
In the fields of Excelsior ’20 in Schiedam, Jersey decided for a field after winning the throw against Scotland. Scottish captain Angus Guy’s early wicket boosted the Jersey boys, but Tomas Mackintosh (79 runs) continued his good form in the tournament, hitting Syed Shah (35 runs) in two days. Conduct a partnership to prepare Scotland for a large sum.
Chris Carnegie threw another good spell for the Jersey squad and got two doors out of his allotment for 31 runs. The midfield batsman, Liam Naylor, raised his team’s total to 233 with a quick shot of 53 * of 46 balls late in the innings.
Jersey struggled in response, losing the early wickets and finding it difficult to penetrate the gaps in the field. Josh Lawrenson (52 runs) tried to hold his team’s innings together for a patient half-century, but was eventually crushed by a ruthless bowling by Charlie Peet (7-12 / 10). The Scottish spinner was virtually unplayable on a turnaround and received just 12 runs for a phen
