Scotland will today bid to take another step closer to realising their World Cup dream when they take on Qualifier hosts Zimbabwe in Bulawayo.
The Scots go into the clash on a high after their historic triumph over West Indies while Zimbabwe were on the receiving end of a nine-wicket thumping at the hands of Sri Lanka in their previous Super Six match.
However, according to vice-captain Matthew Cross the Windies result will be forgotten about when the action gets underway at the Queens Sports Club.
Cross, who top-scored with 74no in Saturday’s victory, said: “We’re only looking at the next game and the chance we have.
“Of course, it was a great result at the weekend and for me it was amazing to be back in the runs and obviously being able to see the chase home is something I’m very proud of.
“But that game is gone now and Doug (Watson, the coach) keeps saying our tournament starts tomorrow. It’s been his message since we got here and so it’s the first game of the tournament as far as we’re concerned.”
Both teams fell at the final hurdle in the 2018 qualifying tournament, also staged in Zimbabwe, but Cross insists there is no greater pressure to go one better this time.
He added: “I can’t speak to how Zimbabwe are feeling but as Associate cricketers this is the kind of pressure we have to deal with pretty much every time we put on the Scotland jersey.
“We don’t get any freebie-type games – there’s always something riding on the next game so we’re used to it. We’ve been talking this morning about what a privilege this pressure is and how lucky we are to be sat here on the verge of qualifying for a World Cup.
“We don’t think or talk about 2018 too much. It’s a different group now and we’ve got ourselves in the right position to go and finish the job.
“Yes, there’s pressure for both teams but there’s an opportunity for someone to have a career-best day and take us one step closer to the World Cup.”
Meanwhile Zimbabwe’s in-form batter Sean Williams – the competition’s leading scorer with 588 runs at an average of 117 – is wary of the Scots.
He said: “Scotland have got some good players – players who can take a game away from you by themselves.
“We’ve been in this position before and we’ve played them quite a lot of late which is probably a good thing for us.”
