Scotland played just two more Twenty20 Internationals following their run to the Super 12 in the 2021 Men's T20 World Cup before travelling to Australia to compete in the present event in Hobart.
But on Monday, precisely a year after Scotland shocked the world by defeating West Indies by 42 runs in their Group B match at Bellerive Oval, they pulled off another significant upset by defeating Bangladesh by six runs in their opening 2021 T20 World Cup match at Al Amerat, Oman.
We won the first game against Bangladesh, and I think we got a lot of confidence from that, so we are thrilled to be off to a winning start like that against the West Indies.
Richie Berrington, the team's captain, said in the post-game news conference, "The boys proved today how good we can be. That belief has always been there. We know if we execute our skills effectively, we can surely give ourselves a strong chance. So, really thrilled to get a winning start."
In Scotland's stunning victory, which came 24 hours after Namibia shocked Sri Lanka by 55 runs at Geelong, George Munsey blasted an unbeaten 66 off only 53 balls as Scotland posted an outstanding 160/5 in the chilly conditions.
Munsey's innings was clearly divided into two halves, with the opening stand of 55 runs in 6.2 overs coming from him smashing strokes for pleasure in the beginning. Even though he wasn't as fluent as he had been at the beginning of the innings, he persisted and eventually reached his first T20 World Cup fifty.
To give Scotland a total they could be sure to defend, the left-handed Munsey held one end up. Before striking three fours in Scotland's final over off Smith to reach the 160-run milestone, he went five overs without finding a boundary.
With the intent he brings to the top of the order, I believe a lot of our guys can feed off of that. He certainly puts the ball under a lot of pressure, which makes it easier for the men at the other end. He's been a really key part of our line-up for a time now.
He has become stronger with time, and we have always had faith that he can compete with the best. So maybe his solid performance will carry on from here, Berrington said.
Following Munsey, left-arm spinner Mark Watt led a superb Scotland bowling display with his outstanding 3/12. Watt and off-spinner Michael Leask (2/14) produced a potent spin partnership that shared five wickets between them and bowled 27 dot balls to stall the West Indies chase.
Berrington said of the player, "He's still young, but he's been doing it for us for a while now. I feel like I can send the ball to him in big times. He tends to deliver and get big wickets. It's definitely a strength of his. I know that you'll see plenty more of him."
Berrington concluded by suggesting that as the T20 World Cup continues, defending totals will be a useful tactic for teams. We'll just have to wait and see. "It will probably simply depend on when you're playing and where you're playing, and they can be different."
We know some of the grounds here in Australia may be quite as big, so it gives you a bit of a chance to defend. But I believe in big games, runs on the board can be really significant. We'll have to see how the next couple of games go and proceed from there.