BENONI // The gulf in class which the UAE have worked so admirably to bridge in the past three weeks finally proved too vast, as Scotland's former Test player Gavin Hamilton extinguished their World Cup dream yesterday.
Hamilton, who is now back in the colours of his native Scotland after playing one Test for England at nearby Johannesburg in 1999, notched a top-class century to set up a 122-run win for Scotland.
Defeat was tough for the part-time players from the Emirates, who fell at the final hurdle for the second time in successive World Cup qualifying competitions.
Just as they did four years previously, the UAE players appeared to be consumed by stage-fright in the sudden-death eliminator.
Back then, their cup hopes were scotched at the last when they were the Netherlands downed them by 145 runs in the fifth-place play-off in Dublin.
Again, they knew they were on the brink of a major feat, one that has only ever been achieved once before by the UAE, back in 1994.
The nerves showed in a sloppy display in the field and with the ball. Although the batsmen battled bravely, they had been left with too much to do.
Scotland's decision to bat first hinted at a lack of confidence in their form with the willow. They have underachieved in this tournament, and their captain, Ryan Watson, faced calls to resign after they slumped to the foot of the Super Eight table.
The UAE's quick bowlers certainly gained some early assistance.
Amjad Javed will rarely have regarded himself as a hostile fast bowler before, if ever. Yet he briefly resembled Curtly Ambrose in his pomp during his opening spell.
First he sent Navdeep Poonia, the Warwickshire opener, off for stitches. Poonia had already hooked Javed for a boundary through square leg, but when he tried to repeat the trick later in the over, the ball snuck through the grille and gashed his face.
Kyle Coetzer came to the crease, which was speckled with blood from Poonia's wound. Four overs later, the Durham batsman wore another delivery, which reared up off a length from Javed, on the chest.
Even Nithin Gopal, who bowls in-duckers at a very polite pace, got one to rise sufficiently that it clipped Coetzer's helmet with a glancing blow, in his first over after replacing Amjad.
However, an early dent in the wickets column was not forthcoming, and Hamilton cleverly marshalled Scotland into a position of power.
His century, which was dotted with a succession of adroit reverse-sweeps and, later, a few large heaves over the fence, provided the bedrock for Scotland's 299 for seven.
Their surge in the second-half of the innings was aided by some wayward bowling from the UAE bowlers, who sent down an unsightly tally of 25 wides between them. They were also infuriating in the field.
Captain Khurram Khan eventually used nine bowlers as he strove for a solution to the problems, but in the end the batsmen were left with a daunting chase.
If they were really going to threaten, then they needed Saqib Ali to check in for a long stay at the crease.
When he did emerge, he was in typically princely form, hammering four swift boundaries, only to be cut off in his prime by carving a catch to backward point.
Nithin Gopal was the only player to excel during the timid reply by the Emirates batsmen. He made 50 before departing, and was a picture of complete dejection after he was run out by a brilliant throw by Neil McCallum. When he went, so did the UAE's faint hopes of glory.
@Email:pradley@thenational.ae
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
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6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
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