Cricket Scotland Regional Series: Highlanders defend

This weekend (17 April) sees the start of a new season of competitive cricketing action in Scotland, with the first match in the three-team round-robin of this year’s newly-formatted Regional Series.

Last season’s winners, the Caledonian Highlanders, begin the defence of their title with a home game against the highly-fancied Eastern Knights at Lochlands, Arbroath, starting at 12 noon.

This season’s Regional Series will be played as an integrated competition consisting of one round of 40-over matches played under Clydesdale Bank 40 playing conditions and one round of double-header T20 matches, with teams playing against each other twice in a single day under Friends Provident T20 playing conditions.

The culmination of the season will feature a finals day on Sunday 31 July, in which all three teams will play one T20 match against each other, with the team gaining the most points over all matches being deemed Regional Champions 2011.

Cricket Scotland Technical Director Andy Tennant said: “The change in format for this year not only rationalises the Series into a single tournament but also, more importantly, reflects the increasing emphasis on T20 cricket in the immediate future of the Scottish representative schedule.

"The series gives aspiring Scotland players the opportunity to stake a claim for international places in the 40/50-over format in the first round of matches. Players then have six potential opportunities to gain experience playing higher-intensity T20 cricket.”

Highlanders coach Neil MacRae has named a squad of 14 for Sunday's opener, with Fraser Burnett the only absentee. Knights coach Steve Knox has a number of player injuries to assess before naming his squad.

Caledonian Highlanders squad: Marc Petrie (captain/wicket-keeper), Calvin Burnett, Craig Ramsay (all Arbroath); Ryan Watson, Aman Bailwal, Umair Mohammed, Matthew Parker, Craig Wallace (all Forfarshire); Gordon Goudie, Michael Leask, Jan Stander, Elton Willemse (all Stoneywood-Dyce); Tyler Buchan, Graeme Tomlinson (Aberdeenshire). Coach: Neil MacRae.

Eastern Knights squad: Gordon Drummond (captain), Ali Evans, Preston Mommsen (all Carlton);  Ollie Hairs (Grange); Stuart Chalmers, Ewan Chalmers, Ryan Flannigan, Anthony McKenna (all Watsonians); Keith Morton, Simon Smith (wicket-keeper), Sean Weeraratna (all Heriots). Coach: Steve Knox.

Dates and venues for other matches in the 40-over series:

CB40 Rules:

• Sunday 8 May: Eastern Knights v Western Warriors at Goldenacre
• Sunday 29 May: Western Warriors v Caledonian Highlanders at Bothwell Policies

FP T20 Rules:

• Sunday 12 June: Caledonian Highlanders v Western Warriors at Mannofield (Two matches)
• Sunday 26 June: Eastern Knights v Caledonian Highlanders at Myreside (Two matches)
• Sunday 10 July: Western Warriors v Eastern Knights at venue tbc (Two matches)
• Sunday 31 July (Finals Day): Warriors v Knights v Highlanders at venue tbc (Three matches)