Scotland v New Zealand: Hosts lose first T20 international by 68 runs

Scotland and New Zealand meet in two Twenty20 internationals before a solitary one-day international

Scotland fell to a crushing 68-run defeat in the first of two Twenty20 internationals against New Zealand.

Batting first, the tourists piled on 225-5 from their 20 overs at The Grange, with opener Finn Allen scoring a brilliant 101 from 56 balls.

In reply, Scotland lost wickets at regular intervals and never looked like getting close to New Zealand's target.

The match came two days after an independent review found Cricket Scotland to be institutionally racist.

The body's entire board resigned on Sunday, a day before the review was published, with the findings casting a shadow over events The Grange.

• Reaction and as it happened

• Cricket Scotland inquiry finds 448 cases of racism

New Zealand's openers put on 85 in nine overs, with Allen and Martin Guptill enjoying the small boundaries and fast outfield on offer in the Scottish capital.

When Allen eventually fell in the 18th over, New Zealand were 175-3, and Scotland would have hoped to restrict the visitors to under 200.

However, huge hitting from Daryl Mitchell and Jimmy Neesham, who scored 30 from just nine deliveries, earned New Zealand 50 runs from the last two-and-a-half overs.

Calum Macleod and George Munsey made a solid start to the run chase, with an opening stand of 60, but from there Scotland lost five wickets for 28 runs.

That completely halted any home momentum, and meant too much was required of Greaves and the lower order.

The two sides will play again in the second T20 game on Friday, before a standalone one-day international on Sunday.

'I want to wear this badge for pride'

The independent review, commissioned by Sportscotland, highlighted 448 examples demonstrating institutional racism.

It also concluded those who raised issues were ignored or sidelined and a culture of "racially aggravated micro-aggression" was allowed to develop.

Majid Haq and Qasim Sheikh, two Scottish cricketers who have spoken openly about being racially abused, have said they would like a public apology for what they went through.

Both were in attendance at The Grange, with Sheikh revealing on Twitter that Scotland head coach Shane Burger had phoned him to say he was "looking forward to welcoming" them to the match.

"I just thought they'd obviously gone through a lot, not just them but many other people," said Burger, in post for three years, who admitted his "shock" at the review findings.

"I'm not here to judge what is right or wrong. I've not been privy to conversations that happened in the past. All I know is we all need to get better and improve.

"We would all like to do this together. It's not only Qasim, there are many other victims who have fallen foul of what's happened.

"For me to pick up the phone was my decision as I knew they were going to be here today. I just wanted to thank them for coming here to support us. That's the only way we get better and heal from this. I want to wear this badge for pride and I'm sure the players do too."

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