Sole and Whittigham join Scots after eligibility U-turn

Scotland were handed a boost last night when ICC chiefs performed an eligibility U-turn.

County stars Chris Sole and Stuart Whittingham have joined the squad in Dubai as a result of the change of heart and could line up against Ireland in an Intercontinental Cup clash starting tomorrow .

A new rule brought in last month meant players who represent an Associate country would have to serve a three-year stand-down period before being eligible to play for a Full Member.

That, combined with the fact that English counties receive financial incentives from the ECB to field England-qualified players, forced Sole and Whittingham to make themselves unavailable for the current tour of the UAE, as it would affect their future eligibility for England.

However, in a statement issued yesterday, Cricket Scotland confirmed that the two fast bowlers have returned to national duty.

It read: “Following strong lobbying from some Associate Members to the ICC there has been a further amendment published to the ICC Eligibility Regulations that were revised on the 25th October 2017.

“A decision has been taken

0 Chris Sole: Joining squad. by the ICC to temporarily reverse the change to these regulations that was introduced to the stand-out period for male cricketers moving from an Associate Member to Full Member.

“As a consequence, both Sole and Whittingham have been able to take a decision in consultation with Cricket Scotland and their counties to rejoin the squad.”

Hampshire’s Sole, the son of Scotland’s 1990 rugby Grand Slamcaptaindavid, andwhittingham of Sussex are rated two Scotland’s best emerging fast bowlers.

They will bolster the Scottish attack not only against Ireland but in two crucial World Cricket League fixtures against Kenya next month.

However, there has been no reprieve for Josh Davey whose Somerset employees are understood to have refused to release the all-rounder who already boasts 77 caps.