LOCAL young cricketer Alex Baum will be jetting off to the United Arab Emirates after being named in Scotland’s under-19 ICC World Cup squad yesterday.

The Greenock Cricket Club ace is part of a 15-man pool which will take part in next month’s elite international tournament. Scotland secured the only European qualifying spot available last year when they remained unbeaten throughout five matches during a tournament in Holland, beating Ireland in a winner-takes-all clash.

The 2014 World Cup will be Scotland’s sixth appearance in the competition after achieving their best ever finish of 11th in Australia two years ago.

Alex and his team-mates will prepare with a week-long training camp and fixtures in Sri Lanka, followed by warm-up matches in the UAE against Afghanistan and England.

When the tournament begins on 10 February, he will face the might of Pakistan and India plus Papa New Guinea in Group B.

Scotland under-19 head coach Craig Wright, an ex-Greenock skipper, said: “The players have earned the right to test themselves against the best players in the world at their age group.

“They performed with impressive consistency in the qualifying tournament last year and now have a fantastic opportunity to show what they are capable of on the world stage.” Scotland U19 World Cup squad: Ross McLean (capt), Alex Baum (wk), Ryan Brown, Will Edwards, Michael English, Nick Farrar, Chayank Gosain, Gavin Main, Zander Muir, Abdul Sabri, Chris Sole, Kyle Stirling, Andrew Umeed, Mark Watt, Stuart Whittingham.