Adjacent to the University Ovals, a large group of rugby players have arrived for training and are just beginning their warm-ups. They love the oval ball in New Zealand. Back to the cricket, Shenwari nails a pull shot to the boundary sweeper but declines to takes the single so early in the over. He eventually takes the one to put Hamid Hassan on strike. Three dots. Scotland turning the screw.

Image source, Reuters

Bangladesh are working hard to tie down the Sri Lankan openers, but still they can't take a wickets. Dilshan breaks the shackles by smacking the last ball of the 20th over through the covers for four.

Sri Lanka: 90-0 off 20 overs

Not out batsman: Thirimanne 42, Dilshan 41

Bowling figures: Mortaza 6-0-20-0, Hossain 3-0-20-0, Taskin 3-1-16-0, Al Hasan 5-0-16-0, Mahmudullah 3-0-17-0

Scorecard

Shenwari brings up his ninth ODI fifty with two into the leg side. He then takes a single to put Hamid Hassan on strike. Rambo is given a few instructions... but will Rambo listen? Yes he does. He safely sees out two dot balls.

Shenwari was livid with Zadran after that dismissal. Replays showed him hitting the turf with his bat, crouching to the floor in disappointment and then rising to his feet to have words with his batting partner as he sloped off. Has Zadran cost his side the game? One from the over.

Image source, ALLSPORT

Golden-arm Berrington strikes again. And what is Zadran doing? His batting partner Shenwari, who is well set on 48, gives a bit more responsibility to the tailender who responds by hoicking a catch high into the air and Preston Mommsen does the honours at mid-off.

The field is spread as Scotland try and tempt Shenwari into turning over the strike. It's like a game of chess now. The right-hander eventually obliges and Dawlat Zadran is given three balls to deal with. He takes a single from the second one, and Shenwari can't retain the strike. Is this Scotland's chance to break this partnership?

Stephan Shemilt
BBC Sport at the World Cup

"New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum was born in Dunedin. Not that they like to go on about it."

There's a touch of the Paul Collingwoods about Scotland's canny medium pacer Richie Berrington. Twelve steps before he delivers the ball, he gets in close to the wicket and tries to bowl wicket to wicket. The singles are there for Shenwari, but the Afghan batsman would rather wait for the boundaries as he farms the strike. Another seven from the over.

Image source, Reuters

Tillakaratne Dilshan is just starting to go through the gears at the MCG, punching Mahmudullah through the covers for his fourth four. The sting has been taken out of the Bangladeshi attack and Sri Lanka are setting themselves up for a big total. Thirimanne has 34, Dilshan has 31.

Shenwari's change in tack prompts Scotland to bring on Majid Haq. Not a bad move to get the spinner to serve up some tempters. Just one from the over.

Image source, AP

Samiullah Shenwari is a useful player for Afghanistan to rely on. He has over 1,100 ODI runs and eight half-centuries. In this innings, he has also become the leading run-scorer for Afghanistan in ODIs. The right-hander clips Iain Wardlaw for four through the leg side to keep the scoreboard ticking, then carves another boundary over mid-off. Go hard or go home.

Afghanistan 107-7 from 30 overs (target 211)

Not out batsman: Shenwari 29, Dawlat 2

Fall of wickets: 42-1 (Mangal 6), 46-2 (Stanikzai 4), 85-3 (Ahmadi 51), 88-4 (Nabi 1), 89-5 (Zazai 0), 96-6 (Najibullah 4), 97-7 (Naib 0)

Bowling figures: Wardlaw 6-0-37-0, Davey 8-1-22-2, Evans 7-1-23-2, Haq 3-0-9-0, Berrington 6-0-16-3

Scotland 210 all out (50 overs): Machan 31, Haq 31, Shapoor 4-38, Dawlat 3-29

Afghanistan won toss

Scorecard

Listen to Test Match Special commentary

The runs have really dried up now. Shenwari is shouldering the burden of the strike, which he retains with a push into the off side. Another good, aggressive over from Evans.

The Afghanistan batsmen have red helmets. Considering they are wearing blue kits, they look a little odd. It's like they've had to borrow their headwear. In the Scotland dug-out, Paul Collingwood looks a little more pink than the last time we saw him on camera. Four from the over.

Image source, Reuters

Another big let-off for Thirimanne in Melbourne as he dissects the gap between keeper and slip. Bowler Mortaza looks absolutely devastated. No fireworks yet, and just two boundaries, but Sri Lanka are building a handy old platform here.

Sri Lanka 51-0 from 10 overs

Not out batsmen: Thirimanne 29, Dilshan 16

Bowling figures: Mortaza 5-0-14-0, Hossain 3-0-20-0, Taskin Ahmed 1-0-12-0, Al Hasan 1-0-5-0

Scorecard

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Image source, AFP

The tall, rangy and flame-haired Alasdair Evans started this Afghanistan collapse with two wickets in an over, and he's comfortably been Scotland's quickest bowler. He's back for a second spell and he's probing away from back of a length. Afghanistan are content to survive for now - much like Scotland's lower order did. Then, the runs will eventually come.

James Gutteridge:, external Nobody remind Richie Berrington that he's supposed to be "a batsman who bowls a bit"

Richie Berrington is supposed to be a part-time bowler, but he's got three key wickets here. That success has put a couple of clicks on his bowling speed too - he's running in a little harder and with much more relish now. Dawlat Zadran gets off the mark with two which brings up the 100 for Afghanistan.

Thanks Phil, you've played a blinder for Scotland there. I make it a 20 over spell of seven wickets for 71 runs. Josh Davey, with his textbook run-up to the wicket, delivers a maiden over. That'll do.

Berrington has two slips in. That is a testimony to how he has bowled in this match, maximising his gentle pace to superb effect. Just the one run from his fifth over. I now hand you back to Mr Marc Higginson, who will see this game through to the close.