Scotland is set to take on Australia in the first T20I of Australia’s tour of Scotland in 2024. The match will be held at the Grange Cricket Ground in Edinburgh on Wednesday, September 4. This series is an exciting opportunity for Scotland, but they face a tough challenge against one of the top teams in world cricket
In their last meeting at the T20 World Cup 2024, Australia won by 5 wickets against Scotland. Scotland batted first and posted a competitive score of 180/5. However, Australia chased down the target with ease.
Australia is currently ranked second in the ICC T20 team rankings, while Scotland is at 13th place. Australia’s depth in both batting and bowling makes them the clear favorites to win this series.
Despite being the underdogs, Scotland will be eager to put up a strong fight and possibly cause an upset. They will also look to use their home advantage and challenge the visitors.
Ahead of the first T20I match at Grange Cricket Club, Edinburgh between the two sides, The Sporting News takes a look at the pitch report and previous records at this venue.
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The Grange Club Edinburgh has hosted a total of 24 T20Is so far. 16 of these matches have been won by the team batting first, while eight have been won by the team batting second.
Grange Club Edinburgh has a seating capacity of about 5,000 spectators.
The pitch at the Grange Cricket Club is good for batting, with an average first innings score of 166. So far, 24 T20Is have been played at this venue, with the highest score being 254 by New Zealand against Scotland. Since this is the start of the season, we can expect the pitch to favor the batters.
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| Average first innings score in Edinburgh | 166 |
| Matches won after batting first | 16 |
| Matches won by chasing team | 8 |
The last T20I at the venue saw Scotland going against Ireland in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Europe Region Qualifier. Scotland, being batting first, posted an impressive total of 213/6 in 20 overs. Their innings saw Brandon McMullen and the captain Richie Berrington scoring quick half-centuries.
In reply, Ireland fell short by 8 runs. They kept on losing wickets at regular intervals, with a decent partnership towards the end of the innings, which was not enough to get them home.
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New Zealand holds the record for the highest total at the Grange Cricket Club in T20 internationals. During the second T20I of their tour of Scotland in July 2022, they scored 254/5 in 20 overs.
Batting first, New Zealand, led by Mitchell Santner, reached this total thanks to Mark Chapman’s 83 and Michael Bracewell’s unbeaten 61. Scotland, in response, scored 152/9, and New Zealand won the match by 102 runs in Edinburgh.
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Scotland recorded the lowest total at the Grange Cricket Club in T20 internationals. In June 2018, while chasing Pakistan’s 166/6 in the second T20I, Scotland was bowled out for 82 in 14.4 overs.
Calum MacLeod scored 25, and Richie Berrington added 20. Pakistan’s Faheem Ashraf led the bowling with 3/5 in 2.4 overs.
Earlier, Shoaib Malik’s 49 not out and Fakhar Zaman’s 33 helped Pakistan reach 166/6. Pakistan won the match by 84 runs, and won the series 2-0.
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Scotland’s Ollie Hairs holds the record for the highest individual score at the Grange Cricket Club in T20 internationals. In July 2023, during an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Europe Region Qualifier match against Italy, Hairs scored an unbeaten 127 off 53 balls.
His innings, which included 14 fours and eight sixes, helped Scotland reach 245/2 in 20 overs. Italy was bowled out for 90 in 12.4 overs, and Scotland won by 155 runs.
Scotland’s fast bowler Brad Currie holds the best bowling figures at the Grange Cricket Club in T20 internationals. In July 2023, during an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Europe Region Qualifier match against Ireland, Currie took 5 wickets for 13 runs in four overs.
Defending a total of 213, he dismissed key Irish players, including Andy Balbirnie and Paul Stirling, which led Scotland to a close eight-run victory.
Scotland’s Richie Berrington has scored the most runs at the Grange Cricket Club in T20 internationals. From 2015 to 2023, the right-handed batter scored 389 runs in 14 matches, averaging 35.36 with a strike rate of 133.67.
He has hit three half-centuries at this venue. George Munsey is second on the list with 281 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of 124.88.
Scotland all-rounder Michael Leask has taken the most wickets at this venue in T20 internationals. The right-arm off-spinner has taken 14 wickets in 13 matches, averaging 18.35 with an economy rate of 7.34. Pacer Alasdair Evans and left-arm spinner Mark Watt are tied for second with 13 wickets each.
According to Dafabet, Australia are the favorites to win the 1st T20I match against Scotland.
| Team | Betting odds |
| Scotland | 11.00 |
| Australia | 1.06 |
