Scotland’s cricketers suffered a shock loss to Singapore in their first match at the World Cup T20 qualifying tournament in Dubai.
Chasing 169 for victory, Kyle Coetzer’s team seemed to be cruising to their target when he and George Munsey advanced to 70 for 0 in the seventh over.
But when the Aberdonian was out for 38 – Munsey contributed 46 – his team collapsed from 111 for 2 to 125 for 5.
And although Calum MacLeod (44) and Tom Sole) seemed to have regained the initiative, there was a dramatic climax as they slumped to a two-run defeat.
A terrific over by Singapore skipper Amjab Mahboob closed out what turned into a brilliant opening display from the underdogs.
He dismissed Calum MacLeod and Safyaan Sharif, and conceded just five runs from the over to seal the game in dramatic fashion for his side.
Scotland won the toss and chose to field, but though wickets for Sharif and Josh Davey reduced their opponents to seven for 2, they rallied through Surendran Chandramohan (51), Arltra Dutta (32) and Amanpreet Singh (26) to post a competitive target.
Sharif and Davey took two wickets apiece in economical spells, but there was less joy for Alasdair Evans, who conceded 45 runs in his four overs, and Sole, who finished with nought for 37, as Singapore proved their resilience.
It was a reminder of the unpredictable nature of T20 and the Scots will need to recover quickly before tackling Kenya on Saturday.
They face sterner challenges as the event progresses between now and November 2, with only the top six of the 14 participants progressing to next year’s World Cup.