Second Chance For Hamilton

Scotland's Gavin Hamilton gets a second World Cup crack at Australia today – and feels victory isn't impossible.
Gavin Hamilton has long been urging his Scotland team-mates to make the most of what will surely be their only shot at World Cup favourites Australia today.
Hamilton is one of two survivors from Scotland's last match against Australia – a respectable six-wicket defeat in the 1999 World Cup at Worcester – and he is delighted to be getting a second chance to take them on.
It would have seemed highly unlikely during some of the intervening years that the former England all-rounder would turn out against Australia again.
In that time, he lost his bowling completely – a turn of events which resulted in his release from Yorkshire – and is now almost exclusively a middle-order batsman.
Hamilton is determined now, therefore, to leave the field with no regrets after today's Group A opener in St Kitts.
"We don't want to be thinking 'Oh, we should have done this' when we know it could be our one and only chance to get them," he said.
"Each one of us knows he has an individual role in the side, and if at least nine of us do what we have to do I think we will compete."
Hamilton is even bold enough to hint that a Scottish victory is not entirely impossible.
"You never know," he said.
"We have to be realistic, but there is always that nagging thought at the back of your head that it only takes two or three good performances from us and a bad day for Australia."
Hamilton's recollections from eight years ago are of a successful time in his career – when his performances for his native country and for his county set him on the fast track to what was to be his only England Test cap.
"It was a few years ago – and it is something special," he remembers.
"I was probably at the peak of my game then, batting and bowling."
Australia were slow starters in a tournament they eventually won, and Hamilton spots similarities in the circumstances leading up to both matches.
"I think we caught them at a pretty bad time then as well," he said.
"They were playing some pretty ordinary cricket – I don't think they realised what their best XI was – and they were chopping and changing their bowling.
"We caught them at a good time – and we hope we are going to catch them not at their best again.
"But we need to be at our best to compete at any level."
For Hamilton himself, another chance against Australia is the second opportunity of a lifetime.
"I've got a second crack of the whip against them, and we all want to put up just as good a fight if not better," he said.
"I'm starting to feel that over the last two or three months things have gone really well with the bat."
Scotland, meanwhile, have benefited from a more full-time approach to this campaign than was possible in their last.
"It is a lot better prepared team than 1999," said Hamilton. "We have moved with the times.
"We do the right things, and the work ethic in this team is second to none I've ever played with."
Latest
-
News
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson joins Yorkshire board
The Paralympic great is one of six people elected into a non-executive position.
-
News
Harry Brook denied at the death as Lancashire snatch tie in Roses clash
Richard Gleeson trapped the new England call-up lbw with only one run needed for victory.
-
News
Brendon McCullum hoping to help England Test team lose ‘fear of failure’
The former New Zealand captain is looking to improve a record which has seen England win just one of their last 17 Tests.
-
News
Brendon McCullum: England can be the nation to reverse Test cricket’s fortunes
The former New Zealand captain has been appointed head coach of the England Test team.
-
News
Matthew Mott: Andrew Symonds came close to playing for England over Australia
The then-teenager was offered a place on the England A tour of Pakistan in 1995 after scoring four centuries for Gloucestershire.
-
News
Stephen Eskinazi stars in record-breaking Middlesex win over Gloucestershire
Paul Stirling made the first century of the Vitality Blast season for Birmingham Bears.
-
News
Ollie Robinson’s England hopes scuppered by back problem
The seamer was plagued by persistent back issues during the Ashes series and missed all three matches against the West Indies.
-
News
Justin Langer blames politics for Australia exit and laughs off England links
Langer was linked with one of the two vacant posts with England.
-
News
He deserves to be there – England’s Matthew Potts backed to shine in Test arena
Potts has received his first international call-up for the squad to face New Zealand at Lord’s on June 2.
-
News
On this day in 2015: Trevor Bayliss appointed England head coach
The Australian leapfrogged initial front-runner Jason Gillespie to replace the sacked Peter Moores.