Kolkata, Feb 9 Encouraged by a dominant win over Italy, Scotland captain Richie Berrington believes his team has the firepower to upset two-time champions England, who had a shaky start to the tournament, in their T20 World Cup Group C match here on Saturday.
Scotland bounced back from their opening match loss to the West Indies on Monday, posting 207 for 4 and then bowling out Italy for 134 for a 73-run win at Eden Gardens, a result that has lifted the mood in the camp and kept their qualification hopes alive.
On the other hand, England had a nervy outing against Nepal, where the former champions scraped home by just four runs while defending 184, needing Sam Curran to bowl a tight final over after Nepal threatened an upset.
"That dream was always there from the start of the tournament. Regardless of that game (England vs Nepal), we know, and we've shown in the past as a team, if we stick to our strengths and perform well, we can put anyone under pressure. Obviously, we know it's going to be tough against England. They're a world-class team," Berrington said in the post-match media interaction here.
"But we know we've got world-class players in our lineup too. So it's going to be on the day. Making sure, as I said, we nail our strengths. And if we get that right, we'll give ourselves a good chance."
The long-standing rivalry between the two nations only adds spice to the contest.
"Yeah, I think that rivalry has always been there between Scotland and England. Obviously, a long history there between the two nations. But I think it's there in every sport.
"Next Saturday is going to be exciting. We look forward to every game in this tournament, and that's our next game. So we're certainly looking forward to it."
With Scotland's rugby team also facing England in Edinburgh the same day in the Six Nations, Berrington even eyed a sporting double.
"We've also got the Scotland rugby team taking on England the same day. So it would make quite a nice headline if Scotland has two wins on Saturday," he said.
Berrington was full of praise for George Munsey's impact at the top. Opener Munsey scored 84 off just 54 balls with the help of 13 fours and two sixes.
"George is obviously, he's a world-class player. I think he's shown that for a period of time now. Such an important player for us, particularly at the top of the order. You know, he always goes out there and sets the tempo of the game.
“As we've seen there today, once he gets going, he's very hard to bowl at. So I think when you're watching that, it certainly gives the other players in the team a lot of confidence.
"He knows his game really well. His ball striking's up there with some of the best players. I think we've seen that he's able to hit 360 degrees in the field, again, which makes it very difficult for opposition to tie him down."
Scotland had only entered the tournament two weeks back following Bangladesh’s ouster after they refused to play in India, and had minimal preparation after winter back home. They looked rusty in the opener but were far sharper against Italy.
The skipper said the victory has injected fresh belief.
"Every game we come into, we want to win. But it was really important that we bounce back today and put in a strong performance. So yeah, obviously really pleased to get that first win in the tournament.
"It will certainly give the guys a lot of confidence going forward, especially the way we won that game at the end. So yeah, just really pleased we've managed to get that first win today."
Middle-order batter Brandon McMullen, who smashed an unbeaten 41 off 18 balls in the late surge, echoed the sentiment, saying the batting unit is peaking at the right time.
"Massive. It shows that the batting unit has come together quite nicely. We did it really well in the warm-ups as well against Afghanistan and Namibia. So, we're tracking really nicely. And obviously, super excited going forward in the competition,” he said.
England's narrow escape against Nepal has only added to Scotland’s belief.
"I watched that game. I was glued to the TV last night. So, cheering on Nepal. But that was awesome. It's good confidence booster for us going forward," he added.
