Rain Takes the Scotland Tri-Series Opener Without a Ball Bowled
Scotland's one day international against the United Arab Emirates at Forthill was abandoned on 3 August without play. Five matches remain in a tri-series that carries World Cup League 2 points.
The tri-series between Scotland, Canada and the United Arab Emirates began at Forthill in Dundee on 3 August, and then it did not begin at all.
No result, no play
Persistent rain saw the opening fixture between Scotland and the UAE abandoned without a ball being bowled. For a competition where every match carries points, a washout in the first game is a genuine cost rather than an inconvenience: it is a point shared that neither side got the chance to win.
What is left
Five matches remain, all at Forthill. The UAE meet Canada on 5 August, Canada play Scotland on 7 August, Scotland face the UAE again on 9 August, the UAE and Canada meet once more on 11 August, and Canada and Scotland close the series on 13 August.
Why this series matters more than the names suggest
These are World Cup League 2 fixtures, the long qualification road that decides which associate nations reach the next fifty over World Cup. Points dropped in Dundee in August are the kind that get remembered a year later.
All three sides are well represented in our own ball-by-ball record. We hold 117 one day internationals involving Scotland, 113 involving the UAE and 59 involving Canada, which is enough history to know that Scotland at home in seam friendly conditions is a harder assignment than a ranking gap implies. Rain permitting, the next fortnight should tell us something.