A second chance after Bangladesh withdrawal
Scotland’s path to the 2026 T20 World Cup has been anything but conventional. After failing to qualify through the European pathway — with disappointing losses to Jersey and Italy — their hopes appeared dashed. But when Bangladesh withdrew from the tournament over scheduling concerns, the door unexpectedly reopened.
“This is not how we wanted to go to a World Cup,” Scotland chief executive Trudy Lindblade said in a virtual press conference last week, acknowledging the complicated route to qualification.
Still, the opportunity was embraced, and Scotland swiftly named their 15-man squad on January 26. But with just days to go before their first warm-up fixture, they were met with a new challenge: visa delays for two squad members.
Sharif and Ihsan overcome visa delays to join squad in India
Two players — Safyaan Sharif and Zainullah Ihsan — faced hold-ups in obtaining Indian visas due to their heritage backgrounds. Sharif has Pakistani roots, and Ihsan was born in Afghanistan. Their travel to India was uncertain until this weekend, when expedited processing allowed them to arrive in time to rejoin their teammates, according to a report by ESPNcricinfo.
“It has been one hell of a week,” Safyaan Sharif said in a video on Cricket Scotland’s Instagram account, reflecting on the chaos leading up to departure.
Sharif admitted the sudden selection caught him off guard, adding, “Once we found out we were going to the World Cup, obviously I couldn’t believe it. For myself, I’m pretty excited, and just can’t wait to get on that park and put in a performance for Scotland.”
After boarding the flight to India, Sharif also expressed appreciation for the behind-the-scenes work that ensured his participation. “Thanks to the Scotland team and the efforts that they’ve put in just to get us on this flight. I’m pretty excited. I’m just glad that the first hurdle is over and we’re just going to get on this plane, enjoy the flight and see the boys in India,” he said.
The team conducted its first training session together in Bengaluru on Sunday. Only one player — Tom Bruce — has yet to join the squad, as he wraps up domestic duties in New Zealand with Central Stags.
Warm-ups begin as Scotland prepare for group-stage challenge
Scotland began their warm-up schedule on Monday against Afghanistan in Bengaluru but were outplayed in their opening outing. Afghanistan posted 184 for 6, and in response, Scotland were bowled out for 123, falling short by 61 runs. While the result wasn’t in their favour, the fixture offered valuable preparation time as the squad continues to acclimatise ahead of the group stage.
Scotland’s full squad, minus Tom Bruce, is now assembled. They are placed in Group C alongside England, West Indies, Nepal, and Italy — a challenging pool, but one in which the top two teams will advance to the Super Eights.
Scotland narrowly missed qualification to that stage in the 2024 edition after a rain-affected match against England and a close loss to Australia.
With their squad now settled and visas sorted, Scotland will hope their second chance leads to a deeper tournament run this time.
