Nottinghamshire’s Luke Wood took two wickets to help England Under-19s secure a winning warm up against Scotland ahead of their World Cup opener on Friday.
After winning the toss, England rocketed their way to 281-4 thanks largely to Ben Duckett, hitting twelve boundaries in his 68-ball 92. His runs came largely in a 128-run stand with Ryan Higgins, who made 60.
In response, Wood and the England bowlers took wickets at regular intervals, Miles Hammond and Josh Shaw also claiming a pair. No Scottish batsman passed 20 as England secured a 153-run victory, dismissing their opponents inside 40 overs.
"It was crucial for us to get used to conditions,” said Ed Barnard.
"220-240 is more competitive out here because of the slower and low pitches." - Ed Barnard
“It's a case of getting used to the pitches because, obviously, they are a lot different to the indoor school back home.
"One of the main things we learnt is that it is a little bit low-scoring. We can't really be aiming for 300-plus scores because I think 220-240 is more competitive out here because of the slower and low pitches.
"Spin obviously plays a key part out here with it being a lot drier and hotter. We have to change our gameplans out here, and we really nailed them down out here previously.
"Having got a few runs out here before, we know we can do it and hopefully we can just do it on a more consistent basis."
Hosts the UAE, Sri Lanka and New Zealand, England’s other group stage opponents, were all also in action. The UAE were bowled out for 101 in a heavy defeat by Pakistan, while Sri Lanka and New Zealand secured victories against India and Canada respectively.