ICC Academy Ground (Kenya won toss): Kenya (2pts) beat Bermuda by 45 runs

Bermuda captain Dion Stovell was left cursing another top-order failure by his batsmen as his side fell to a third defeat in as many days, leaving them on the brink of elimination from the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier in Dubai.

Stovell was one of three wickets that fell for just seven runs inside three overs as Bermuda crashed to a 45-run loss to previously winless Kenya yesterday.

Chasing 139 for victory, Okera Bascome’s poor run with the bat continued as he perished to the very first ball of Bermuda’s innings. With previous scores of four and six in the tournament, it has been a qualifier to forget for the middle of three Bascome brothers in the squad.

Opening the batting as one of a number of Bermuda players opting to not use a helmet throughout the tournament, the wicketkeeper-batsman has been targeted by the short ball and was here caught off his gloves at short fine leg while attempting to play a cross-batted shot.

Stovell has also struggled with the bat and departed for four yesterday, adding to his golden duck and solitary run across the two previous days.

Meanwhile, Terryn Fray, brought into the side to shore up the batting after missing the Papua New Guinea defeat, was run out for three the very next ball — just 24 hours after he ran out his captain in similar fashion.

It was reminiscent of the 11 for five Bermuda slumped to in the opener against Papua New Guinea, and the batting malaise has left Stovell ready to ring the changes.

“We’re losing games at the top,” he said. “Our first three batsmen, including myself, aren’t applying ourselves and spending time at the wicket. It makes it hard to recover. You saw that against Papua New Guinea, and it’s probably time to look at somebody else. I have to take ownership as skipper and I haven’t had enough time at the wicket. Even for Okera, at the moment, it is tough. For me, I feel good in the middle, I just think at times I try and play too many shots too early.

“Our batting let us down today and our top three is not producing. At this level, it’s just not good enough.

“It’s making it hard for our middle order. Once you’re 11 for three, it’s hard to recover and we’ve done that in two games. To be fair to Kenya, though, they were good, but we had some poor shot selections.”

Bermuda’s future is now out of their hands, with a much needed rest day today followed by the final three games against Namibia tomorrow, Scotland on Thursday and the Netherlands on Saturday.

Sitting second-bottom in group A, and without a point, Bermuda are now two points adrift of Kenya, and above them are the quartet of Singapore, Scotland, Netherlands and Papua New Guinea on four points apiece.

It will take a remarkable effort for Bermuda to still qualify, but Stovell is far from giving up the ghost. He added: “At this stage, it’s tough to qualify now. But we are going into every game hoping to win the remainder.”

Earlier, there was one change from the side that lost to Singapore on Sunday, with Allan Douglas replacing the injured Malachi Jones, as Stovell’s men were put into the field at the toss.

Bermuda got off to a flyer, thanks to George O’Brien, the 35-year-old removing Alex Obanda with just the fourth ball of the innings.

They were firmly on top by the end of the powerplay, as Kamau Leverock took a wicket in each of his first two overs en route to registering two for 30, the best full Twenty20 international figures of his career.

But the men in pink would take just one further wicket, courtesy of Rodney Trott, as Dhiren Gondaria helped Kenya to recover with the highest individual score of the competition.

Gondaria, who finished on 85 not out, had a stroke of fortune in that he was reprieved while facing Leverock in the seventeenth over when the Bermuda bowler’s third ball hit the batsman and then the stumps without dislodging the bails.

He was also dropped by O’Brien two overs later, again off the bowling of Leverock, as Kenya finished on 138 for four from their 20 overs.

Despite the three early dismissals, Delray Rawlins and Janeiro Tucker instigated a fine recovery, but once Bermuda’s two most in-form and talented batsmen were out, their hopes quickly evaporated.

The pair combined to put on 58 for the fourth wicket before first Rawlins, for 37 from 26 balls, and then Tucker, with 22 from 33, holed out in quick succession.

They were the only players to reach double figures, their departures swinging the game back in Kenya’s favour.

Bermuda’s remaining batsmen would meekly come and go, their final seven wickets falling for just 28 runs as they were bowled out for 93, to leave the side on the cusp of exit with three games left.

SCOREBOARD

Kenya

†I A Karim c Stovell b Leverock 15

A A Obanda c Rawlins b O’Brien 0

D M Gondaria not out 85

C O Obuya lbw b Leverock 4

R R Patel c O Bascome b Trott 11

R N Patel not out 15

Extras (b 1, lb 2, w 5) 8

Total (4 wkts; 20 overs) 138

J S Kundi, N M Odhiambo, L N Oluoch, E Otieno and *S O Ngoche did not bat.

Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-29, 3-41, 4-66.

Bowling: O’Brien 3-0-17-1; Rawlins 4-0-30-0; Leverock 4-0-30-2; Stovell 3-0-15-0; Tucker 3-0-21-0; Trott 3-0-22-1.

Bermuda

†O Bascome c Odhiambo b Otieno 0

T S Fray run out 3

* D C Stovell b Ngoche 4

D M W Rawlins c Karim b R R Patel 37

J J Tucker c R R Patel b Obuya 22

D A P Darrell b Ngoche 4

K S Leverock c Kundi b Obuya 3

A C Douglas c R N Patel b R R Patel 2

O G L Bascome lbw b Obuya 2

R J Trott not out 5

G H O’Brien b Obuya 6

Extras (w 5) 5

Total (18.5 overs) 93

Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-7, 3-7, 4-65, 5-67, 6-71, 7-76, 8-78, 9-78.

Bowling: Otieno 2-0-8-1; Ngoche 4-0-15-2; Oluoch 2-0-6-0; Obuya 3.5-0-27-4; Odhiambo 3-0-18-0; R R Patel 4-0-19-2.

Umpires: Ahmed Shah Pakteen(Afghanistan) and R R Wimalasiri (Sri Lanka).

Match referee: J J Crowe (New Zealand).

Other matches

Group A

ICC Academy, Dubai (Scotland won toss): Scotland 146-6 (20 overs; K J Coetzer 54, M H Cross 40 not out); Papua New Guinea 142-9 (20 overs; N Vanua 33, L Siaka 31; Hamza Tahir 3 for 24). Scotland (2pts) beat Papua New Guinea by four runs.

Group B

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi (Hong Kong won toss): Hong Kong 116-7 (20 overs; Nizakat Khan 31, K D Shah 30); United Arab Emirates 118-2 (15.1 overs; Rameez Shahzad 54, Chirag Suri 44 not out). United Arab Emirates (2pts) beat Hong Kong by eight wickets.

Tolerance Oval, Abu Dhabi (Oman won toss): Ireland 183-3 (20 overs; G J Delaney 89 not out, K J O’Brien 41); Oman 148-9 (20 overs; Khawar Ali 50). Ireland (2pts) beat Oman by 35 runs.

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi (Canada won toss): Canada 159-7 (20 overs; N R Kumar 57 not out, Hamza Tariq 33); Nigeria 109-8 (20 overs; C N Onwuzulike 39; D Heyliger 3 for 16). Canada (2pts) beat Nigeria by 50 runs.