Barras staying in the hunt

By ROBINSON LEKA
PAPUA New Guinea’s race for a spot in next year’s T20 World Cup will come down to the wire following their four-run loss to Scotland in Dubai on Monday.
Coach Joe Dawes told The National that the Barramundis made a perfect start to the tournament before suffering their first loss.
“It was a disappointing loss but it was always going to be tough to win three in a row, especially in these conditions,” he said.
“Obviously, the first two games have been very pleasing for us. We wanted to start the tournament well and that is what we have done.
“Norman Vanua’s hat-trick together with the batting of captain Assad Vala and Tony Ura have been the highlights.
“The guys have fielded well and we need to keep going as I think this will be a tight tournament. We want to finish first in our pool and go straight to Australia next year.
“For us, moving forward it is about recovering properly and making sure we prepare well.
“I was happy with most of the bowling and fielding, we just lost wickets in clumps and a top-four batter didn’t get us home.
“We will talk about these things and get ready for the next game.”
The Barramundis will face the Netherlands today, Singapore on Saturday and Kenya on Sunday.