Wayne batted very well and held a blinding catch yesterday, as his Italian side beat Jersey. It was a typically breezy fifty, ended only by an excellent catch on the boundary, while he also held a catch that a man twenty years younger would have enjoyed and celebrated.
Today was a different story, against the Scottish team which was very impressive. He was out third ball, playing too soon and hitting to mid on, after dropping a catch during the early part of the Scots innings that he would hold the other 99 times in a hundred.
It illustrated again what a great leveller cricket is. Scotland steamrollered the Italy side that looked decent on paper. Opening bat Ollie Hairs made a memorable and bucolic century, that belied his previous average of 13 in the format, but the style of the innings, with 98% of his shots pulled or slogged through midwicket, suggested it might just be one of those days when it all went right.
Brandon McMullen again looked a class act, scoring 96 and showing himself as a team player when caught out on the boundary in the penultimate over. Some might have nudged a single to retain strike and almost guarantee it in the last over, but it didn't detract from a very fine innings of 96 from 50 balls
Hairs will rightly get the headlines, but the manner of the runs didn't suggest he would do that against a higher level of opposition. McMullen, with reverse sweeps, powerful drives and rapier like cuts, looked the talent that he undoubtedly is.
It does need to be said, however, that aside from Grant Stewart of Kent, the Italian bowling was very ordinary. His four overs for 22 were excellent 8n a total of 245-2, akin to the figures of George Scrimshaw at Taunton in the carnage of last season.
For Scotland there will be tougher matches, for sure. Hopefully Wayne gets a chance to shine later in the tournament.
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