FP Trophy (at The Grange): Warwickshire (242-6) beat Scotland (146) by 96 runs
Man-of-the-match Alex Loudon increased Warwickshire's hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals of the Friends Provident Trophy by dragging the team out of a prolonged period of restrained early-order batting to extract a comfortable 96-run victory over Scotland in Edinburgh yesterday.
Loudon's unbeaten 53 (35 balls, four fours, fours sixes) was the perfect foil to the 88 not out scored by Jonathon Trott (118 balls, four fours, two sixes).
Their partnership of 97 off the final 11 overs changed the course of the contest and accelerated the innings to a challenging total of 242 for six wickets. The visitors were then able to execute a confident and disciplined display in the field.
Warwickshire thus enter their final match in the North Conference, against Durham at Edgbaston on Wednesday, in second position in the group with 12 points, two fewer than Durham. Nottinghamshire, third-placed on 11 points after yesterday's one-wicket defeat by Durham at the Riverside, play their final match on Wednesday at Trent Bridge against Lancashire who are out of contention for a place in the semi-finals.
Scotland were in lively form in the field from the start and, although Ian Westwood opened in busy, blustering fashion, Darren Maddy, the captain, was given an early let-off in the second over when dropped off Paul Hoffmann before he had scored.
Westwood flashed at a rising ball outside off stump in the ninth over and was caught by Colin Smith, Scotland's tall wicketkeeper, off John Blain, the former Northamptonshire and Yorkshire seamer, for 22.
He was followed at the start of the next over by Kumar Sangakkara who edged Hoffmann to first slip, where captain Ryan Watson accepted the chance.
Trott, however, started off in confident mood and continued to sparkle as other batsmen came and went at the other end.
Maddy survived a confident leg-before appeal in the 16th over but was caught on the square leg boundary in the following over after pulling medium-pacer Gordon Drummond straight to Neil McCallum having scraped his way to 16.
At 55 for three, Warwickshire were hardly in a strong position and Trott nearly became the fourth wicket, being deceived by left-arm spinner Glenn Rogers, in the 20th over, before hitting Drummond for a glorious straight four immediately after.
Meanwhile, Jim Troughton had picked up the pace with a straight four off Rogers and another between mid-on and mid-wicket but was bowled in the first over by off-spinner Majid Haq.
Tim Ambrose started hesitantly, being troubled by Rogers' varied flight and bounce, as the Scotland spinners took control of the match.
Trott miscued into the space around the square leg umpire, then battered a ball from Haq to the extra-cover boundary, and Ambrose did much the same to the leg side, as Warwickshire reached three figures in the 32nd over. Their partnership flourished briefly until Ambrose chased a ball from Blain into the wicketkeeper's hands, and Tim Groenewald followed soon after, carving Watson's first ball, a full toss, straight down Omer Hussain's throat at deep mid-on.
With the total a modest 145 for six in the 39th over, Warwickshire needed some rapid impetus to their innings, which was provided by Trott, who pulled a six over mid-wicket to reach his half-century, and Loudon.
The latter was given two lives when on five. He hammered the ball to George Bailey, the Tasmanian, at short extra cover and was dropped, and two overs later survived a stumping appeal off Haq.
Loudon immediately opened his shoulders and despatched the unfortunate Haq for two fours and a mighty six. At the other end Trott sent a full toss over the leg-side boundary. Loudon raced to his half-century off 31 balls with a further couple of fours and three sixes as the Scotland lost control.
Warwickshire's bowling honours were shared, with Maddy, Heath Streak and Groenwald each taking two wickets as only Neil McCallum (40) and Blain (32) posed any threat to an easy Warwickshire victory.
