DUNEDIN — Scotland struck another blow for the ‘associate' nations at the Cricket World Cup when it briefly threatened to beat co-host New Zealand Tuesday, and captain Preston Mommsen said it shows the second-tier countries belong on the world stage. The Scots may have suffered a ninth loss from nine World Cup games, but took succor from taking seven New Zealand wickets as the Black Caps chased down a modest Scottish total of 142. Combined with Ireland's victory over the West Indies Monday, Scotland's competitive performance has given further volume to calls for cricket to give its non-Test nations a fair go. The reduction of the World Cup from 14 to 10 teams in 2019 will close the door on some of the smaller cricketing nations whose giant-killing performances have added luster to previous world tournaments. “Hopefully the performance we put on today will get people talking and shows associates belong at World Cups,” Mommsen said. “Ireland have been doing it consistently. I've always said it's great that they are able to do that consistently on the world stage as an associate nation. We recently beat them quite heavily so we do take a lot of confidence from their performance yesterday.” Next on the agenda for Scotland is England; the first time the neighbors will play on the World Cup stage. Scotland rued two dropped chances that could have swung the match in its favor. Brendon McCullum, on 5, and Corey Anderson, on 3, were both lucky to survive. “For us to beat a team like New Zealand, like England, like Sri Lanka we need to hang onto every chance we get,” Mommsen said. New Zealand skittled Scotland out for 142 after putting it into bat, effectively ensuring there would be no repeat of Monday's match when Ireland, another non-Test nation, downed the West Indies. While the Black Caps overhauled their target in 24.5 overs, they could have been in trouble if set a stiffer chase after a strong effort with the ball saw Scotland take seven wickets. A rash of New Zealand batsmen threw away their wickets chasing glory with wild shots, showing none of the controlled aggression that has made them one of the tournament favorites. Captain Brendon McCullum said they could not afford to be so wasteful in Wellington Friday, when they face an England side desperate to bounce back from a 111-run loss to Australia. “It was a really good performance with the ball — with the bat, we showed glimpses but we have to improve,” he said. The Black Caps fielded an unchanged line-up from their 98-run win over Sri Lanka, determined not to drop their standards against unfancied opposition. They appeared set for a crushing win in perfect conditions at Dunedin's University Oval, claiming early wickets to leave Scotland reeling at 12 for four. Matt Machan (56) and Richie Berrington (50) were the standouts with a 97-run fifth-wicket partnership in a Scottish innings that featured five ducks — four of them golden. Corey Anderson and Dan Vettori took three wickets apiece as Scotland folded after 36.2 overs, with Trent Boult and Tim Southee coming close to snatching hat tricks. New Zealand made hard work of chasing 143 on pitch where it scored 360 against Sri Lanka last month, with Iain Wardlaw and Josh Davey both taking three wickets for Scotland. The win was not pretty but man-of-the-match Boult said New Zealand “got the job done.” McCullum (15), Martin Guptill (17) and Ross Taylor (9) all went cheaply, leaving New Zealand 66 for three early in the innings. Kane Williamson made a good start and reached 38 before he too suffered a rush of blood to the head. Luke Ronchi, who scored an unbeaten 170 against Sri Lanka at the venue last month, managed just 12 before he was dismissed trying to cart Davey out of the ground. Scotland skipper Mommsen, who was among those dismissed without scoring, said the poor start derailed his side's chance of an upset win. “Matt and Richie batted well and showed what they are capable of, but we couldn't go on from there and were below par,” he said. “Unfortunately we couldn't get the final three wickets, but I'm very proud of the performance.” — Agencies
