Ireland beat England in T20 World Cup: Eoin Morgan and Andrew Balbirnie ‘incredible and moving’ result | Cricket News
Eoin Morgan said Ireland’s T20 World Cup sweep of England was one of his biggest results given the strength of the opposition, with winning captain Andrew Balbirnie reflecting on the “special” victory at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Ireland cruised to a five-wicket victory over Jos Buttler’s side at DLS after their opponents were 105-5 in 14.3 overs – ending a rain-hit chase of 158 – five runs short of a nominal score of 110.
Andrew Balbirnie’s men were ruthless with the ball as they decimated England to 29-3 in the power play and 86-5 in the 14th over, bouncing back from 103-1 to 157 after losing the last nine wickets for 54 runs. hit first.
Josh Little (2-16) dismissed Buttler (0) and Alex Hales (7), while compatriot Fionn Hand (1-17) bowled Ben Stokes (6) with a fine delivery en route to Ireland’s maiden T20. He won against England and was third in all white-ball cricket – 11 years after India won the famous three-wicket World Cup in 50 overs.
Former England captain and Irish batsman Morgan said sky sports: “You look at the concussions in Ireland’s cricketing history and it’s there. They will be extremely proud of what they have achieved and will return to it for years to come.
“The England team they’re playing is one of the most talented and versatile England teams they’ve ever fielded, so it’s a very important win.
“Ireland sensed an opportunity and took it”
“They completely outclassed England in batting and bowling. They were brilliant on a big occasion and they seized the opportunity and delivered.
“You can talk about two points in this game, but beating England tells a bigger story in the grand scheme of things for young Irish cricketers.”
Ireland captain Balbirnie (62) and Lorcan Tucker (34) shared a quick second wicket of 82 off 57 in Melbourne, punishing anything the England bowlers offered short and wide.
Morgan added: “Ireland came with a very solid plan, especially with the bat. When England went wide or long, they were proactive enough to take advantage and target the offside as much as they could.
“Mark Wood said he had a greasy foot at half-time, but I don’t think that’s enough of a reason to play as badly as England.
“If you have more to offer, you have to do less and focus on execution, as Ireland played on the power play.
“Ireland were very disciplined, kept playing full, kept moving the ball and therefore created chances. They were cool and calm in the power play.”
“I hope Ireland will have more days like this”
Ireland beat the West Indies in Hobart last week to progress to the second round of the T20 World Cup for the first time since 2009, but then opened their Super 12 campaign with a nine-wicket loss to Sri Lanka at the same venue.
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It was a stunning performance for Ireland as they claimed victory against England in the ICC T20 World Cup.
However, Balbirnie’s side have regained their form and can now look for a place in the semi-finals, a dream that will come true if they beat Afghanistan at the MCG on Friday (5pm UK time).
“It’s amazing and quite emotional because we’ve never played a game of cricket here [at the MCG]said Balbirnie.
“It’s great to come play tournament favorites with so many big names and put on a show in front of friends, family and a range of people from around the world.
“It was pretty special to do it at one of the most incredible cricket grounds in the world. We are trying to make this game a bigger sport in our country and days like this will help. Hopefully we’ll have a few more in the future.
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Fionn Hand delivered a beautiful ball to clean up Ben Stokes in the T20 World Cup match between Ireland and England.
“Some of our fans extended their trips and spent some money. They are very passionate about the game.
“We’re a little disappointed that we finished the way we did [with the bat]. England got the momentum with them, so our message was to try to create chances because we know how this England team likes to play. We would go in screaming if we took every opportunity we had.
“We were able to take a little bit of our luck, overcome some injuries and move forward. We were able to get a competitive total and a winning total.”
Watch Ireland’s next T20 World Cup match against Afghanistan on Sky Sports Cricket on Friday. Set-up begins at 4.30am before kick off at 5am at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
