Scotland's Charlie Cassell breaks all time records

Charlie Cassell of Scotland rocked Oman on his ODI debut, in an ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 match at Dundee, becoming the first ever to take seven wickets in his first ODI game.

Born in Aberdeen in 1998 to a Scottish mother and an English father, Charlie Cassell grew up in the UK until the family moved to Perth in 2005, where he played club cricket at Guildford Midland. Later, he moved to Sydney, where he played for the Sydney University Cricket Club, and on his return to Scotland, for Forfarshire.

When Chris Sole opted out of the CWCL2 due to personal reasons, Scotland replaced him with Cassell. He got his ODI cap on Monday (July 22), and came on to bowl first-change after Oman were 49-2 after 11 overs.

Cassell trapped Zeeshan Maqsood leg-before with his first ball in international cricket. In the process, he became the 32nd to take a wicket with their first ball in men’s ODIs.

Two wickets off first two balls

When he bowled Ayaan Khan with his second ball, Cassell became the first bowler to take two wickets with the first two balls of an ODI career, but he was unlikely to stop there.

Still not content, Cassell removed Khalid Kail two balls later, and Shoaib Khan with the third ball of his second over. At this point, his figures read 1.3-1-0-4.

A six by Mehran Khan ruined his figures, but Cassell had his revenge by dismissing Mehran. This made him the 15th to take a five-wicket haul on debut in men’s ODIs.

Opener Pratik Athavale (34), who had seen seven wickets go down at the other end, now fell to Cassell, making it the third six-for by a debutant in men’s ODIs, after Fidel Edwards’s 6-22 (against Zimbabwe, Harare 2003/04) and Kagiso Rabada’s 6-16 (against Bangladesh, Mirpur 2015).

Note:
Glenys Page’s 6-20 against Trinidad and Tobago in the 1973 World Cup remains the only six-wicket haul in women’s ODIs.

There might have been a seventh wicket for Cassell off the next ball, had Brandon McMullen not dropped Kaleemullah off him. Instead, Gavin Main dismissed Kaleemullah at the other end.

Best-ever figures on ODI debut

However, this was Cassell’s day. He did get No.11 Bilal Khan to round off the Oman innings for 91 – and finish with 7-21, the first-ever seven-wicket haul on debut in men’s ODIs.

Image credit: Cricket Scotland

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