The third and final European sub-regional qualifier is underway in Finland with Austria, Norway, Guernsey and France all winning today.

In Group 1 this morning, Austria took on Luxembourg and scored 139, Iqbal Hossain’s 34 their top score. Sahel Zadran then took three wickets for just seven runs as Luxembourg were bowled out for 103, losing by 36 runs.

In the afternoon, the match between Guernsey and Bulgaria was shortened by one over per side, with Guernsey batting first and scoring 130-8, Tom Nightingale top scoring with 40. Only two players reached double figures in Bulgaria’s reply as they were bowled out for 78, losing by 52 runs. David Hooper, Anthony Stokes and Adam Martel all took three wickets.

In Group 2, the morning match saw Norway start their campaign in great style. Estonia chose to bat first and were bowled out for 101, Ali Masood top scoring with 44. The Norwegians raced to their target in just ten overs without loss, Raza Iqbal scoring 64 from just 37 balls.

In the afternoon, Gustav McKeon scored 76 as France put up a score of 153-6 against the Czech Republic. Some tight bowling from the French helped restrict the Czechs to 102-9 from their 20 overs, a 51 run defeat.

The tournament continues tomorrow. In Group 1, Austria take on Slovenia and Guernsey play Luxembourg whilst in Group 2, Norway will look for another big win when they take on Czech Republic and France play Switzerland, the latter playing their first ICC event since 2009.