It’s very difficult to approach a game when you’re already down 2-0 in a 3-match series. That’s what Ireland were tasked with today as they faced off against England in the 3rd ODI of a series that they had already lost. However, it’s not like the good old days where we’d just term this game as a dead rubber, no.
It’s the World Cup Super League and every One Day International has 10 points attached to it, so Ireland had to bring their best game today and that’s exactly what they did at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. Having batted first in the first couple of games, they were asked to chase today, and chase big too, after England put up 328 thanks mostly to captain Eoin Morgan’s century.
With Ireland being bundled out for 172 in the 1st ODI and then barely making it past 200 in the 2nd ODI, not many would’ve expected them to go on and chase this down, but they’ve always been giant hunters, haven’t they? And well, historically speaking, they’ve had a little bit of a liking for England, having beaten them once in the past too!
It was the perfect ending to this ODI series in England as the chase went all the way down to the wire. They combatted Morgan’s century with two centurions of their own in Paul Stirling and Andy Balbirnie. They needed the senior players to step up and that’s exactly what they did today, both scoring centuries and putting up a 200+ run stand for the 3rd wicket partnership!
Once the foundation was laid, Kevin O’Brien (who has experience of beating England in the past) came out and ensured he got the job done along with youngster Harry Tector, both finishing unbeaten as Ireland got past the line in the 50th over, registering a famous 7-wicket victory and completing the series 1-2! A night to remember!
It was a bit of an anti-climax towards the end as Saqib Mahmood bowled a waist-high no-ball that eased the chase in the final over. Eventually, Ireland got there with a ball to spare and for similar timely updates from the world of cricket, you can keep coming back here to ReadScoops.com…
