CHANCES are it won’t now be a road that leads to India but, regardless, Scotland’s journey to the T20 World Cup begins in earnest this week.

Without a competitive match since December 2019, Shane Burger’s men will look to shake off the rust with two one-day internationals against the Dutch in Rotterdam ahead of what will hopefully be a busy summer and autumn of action.

The biggest event on their calendar, however, is the World Cup, scheduled for India in October but now facing the growing prospect of being moved to the UAE as the sub-continent endures a torrid time in its efforts to combat Covid.

Unsurprisingly there is an eagerness among the Scotland squad to get back going again after such a lengthy period of inactivity.

It would be understandable if there were a few loose deliveries and sloppy shots in the two games ahead but batsman Calum MacLeod believes a recent training block has helped lick them into shape.

“Everyone is just excited to go and play,” he said. “It’s been that long since we’ve been on the park together.

“We’ve done a six-week training block and now we’re ready to get out there. So, without setting ourselves up for a fall, I’d expect our two performances to be of a high standard.

“Playing is obviously different to training but our preparation has been good so I’m hoping there won’t be too much rust.

“It’s about being mentally switched on to make the right decisions and that’s not something you should lose through not playing.

“And I think just the eagerness to play for Scotland again should see everyone at the top of their games.”

Scotland’s schedule beyond this week is still to be confirmed but, restrictions permitting, MacLeod sees it as a chance to make up for lost time.

At 32 years old, the county cricket stalwart knows he has more days behind than ahead of him at international level but has retained a hunger to keep proving himself as the opportunities emerge.

A rejigged ICC calendar now includes another T20 World Cup next year and then the next 50-over version in 2023 and MacLeod isn’t ruling out hanging around for both, should Scotland qualify.

“We’ve got these two games against the Netherlands and then hopefully into a busy summer. We don’t know what that’s going to look like yet as everything changes so fast but there’s a lot pencilled in.

“We’ve got the World Cricket League, we’re meant to be going to Sri Lanka at some stage and it would be good if we could get a big home game at the Grange too.

“After that we’ve got the World Cup at the back end of the year. The chance to get back to that level is something that motivates the group. And on a personal level I feel I’ve not always performed at World Cups as well as I would have liked.

“The chance to potentially play in three of them over the next three years is, then, a massive motivator for me.  

“At 32, that’s what drives you to keep your fitness and form up so you’re able to still be involved.

“We know from experience how quickly the ICC can take things away from the Associate countries so while that opportunity is there for countries like Scotland we have to do all we can to be there.”

Should MacLeod decide to retire tomorrow, then there is little doubt what would dominate his legacy. The 140 not out against England in 2018 to help fashion a famous victory over the number one-ranked ODI team in the world remains an undoubted career high.

“I’ll never get sick talking about that,” admits the Kent-based player with a laugh.

If there is any attached frustration, though, it is that, beyond a day of back page headlines, it didn’t lead to cricket pushing its way into the wider consciousness of a nation.

Granted, a rain-interrupted 2019 summer against Afghanistan and Sri Lanka and then the enforced postponement of last year’s planned visits to Edinburgh by Australia and New Zealand haven’t helped in the attempts to raise the sport’s profile.

MacLeod knows it will likely take more famous wins against full member nations for cricket to rouse the country once more.

“Beating England was a great moment but we maybe didn’t capitalise on that as much as we should have,” he admits.

“But I think the game is in a very good place at grassroots level and hopefully the organisation keeps investing money in players and facilities to keep pushing it forward.

“I think as a country we punch above our weight and with the right structure in place we could really flourish.

“We need to have more games against full members – ideally at home – so people can come and see for themselves how well we are doing. And if we can win those games then even better.”