T20 World Cup: Ireland defeat England by five runs on Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in stunning MCG upset
World Cup favourites England were dealt a stunning setback when Ireland prevailed by five runs in a rain-interrupted match, writes SHANNON GILL
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The Irish team noticed it straight away upon arriving at the MCG.
Walking past the merchandise stalls prior to their game against England, there was nothing at all in their green. West Indies shirts were well represented but not Ireland. Tournament organisers clearly didn’t expect them to still be in the tournament.
That ICC strategy will need a serious rethink after Ireland stunned T20 World Cup favourites England by five runs on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method on Wednesday. The result was among the nation’s greatest in international cricket: not only had they shocked Jos Buttler’s men, they’d done it on world cricket’s biggest stage.
Pundits favoured that the spiced-up Melbourne pitch would suit the England attack; the bounce and pace too much for an Irish side which rarely gets to play horizontal bat shots at home.
But nobody told that to Irish captain Andy Balbirnie.
Every time England’s pace attack of Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood and Sam Curran pitched short of a length, Balbirnie and Lorcan Tucker (34 off 27) fought fire with fire and propelled Ireland to 1-92 at the halfway mark of the innings.
Balbirnie, the player of the match, finished with 62 from 47 balls in what proved to be the match-winning contribution.
The crowd was sparse at the MCG but, by the conclusion of the Irish innings, there were murmurs that England might be in trouble. Even when wickets tumbled in the late overs, the men in green had still mustered a competitive 157 under the threatening Melbourne skies.
The fiery Irish batting inspired their efforts with the new ball. There was no time for conservatism. A full, swinging delivery from Josh Little removed Buttler with the second ball of the innings and the same approach from Fionn Hand castled Stokes as England slumped to 3-29.
The upset was on.
The weather radar looked bleak, heaping more pressure on the stumbling tournament favourites. Dawid Malan (35 off 37) and Moeen Ali (24 not out off 12) swung gamely with the spectre of Duckworth-Lewis-Stern looming, but pressure catches were held by Hand and Gareth Delany.
As the heavens opened, the Irish jigs started as the players scampered off.
“I’ve never been happier to see rain,” said Balbirnie.
England were five runs short of the D/L target.
Ireland had just won the first ever completed T20 international between the countries.
Their only previous meeting came at the 2010 T20 World Cup, which was washed out. And Ireland won their most recent One-Day International against England in 2020 by seven wickets in a high-scoring thriller in Southampton.
Buttler offered no excuses after play.
“They outplayed us in all facets,” he said.
His counterpart Balbirnie was overwhelmed by the result and its setting.
The Irish team did the MCG museum tour on Tuesday night where they marveled at a tribute to countryman Ronnie Delany, who won gold in the 1500m at the 1956 Olympics on the same turf.
It was a reminder of the history that could be made in their first MCG outing.
“It’s amazing, it’s kind of emotional,“ he said, ”Because we’ve never played a game of cricket here.
“To do this at one of the most amazing cricket grounds in the world is pretty special.
“To come here and play the tournament favourites with so many big names in the game and put on a show for the fans here and a number of people around the world is very satisfying.
“They’re the best T20 team in the world in my opinion. Part of me was struggling to understand how we’d compete with them.”
He admitted the strategy for his own knock was rudimentary.
“It was just survive from Mark Wood’s end and see how we go at the other end,” he said with a smile.
After play was abandoned, Balbirnie and his teammates dashed across the ground in the pouring rain to greet their family and friends who had made the long trip out to Australia for the T20 World Cup; a trip that’s turning out to be longer than they had bargained for.
“A few of them have extended their trip so they‘ve spent a bit of money over the last week,“ he continued. ”They’re so passionate about the game in Ireland and we’re continuing to try to make this sport a bigger game in our country.
“Days like today will help.”
While the win could have a long-term impact on cricket in Ireland, the short-term effects on Group 1 could be similarly significant. England’s loss provides Australia with a slightly wider path to the semi-finals after their early stumble against New Zealand, and heaps pressure on both teams ahead of their clash at the MCG on Friday. It could serve as a virtual elimination match for the two pre-tournament favourites.
As for Ireland, they take on Afghanistan at the MCG on Friday and then Australia in Brisbane on Monday.
Balbirnie is daring to dream.
“If we can win Friday we can take some serious momentum up to Brisbane. Who knows what could happen?” he said.
Maybe it’s time for World Cup organisers to get those Ireland shirts made up.
Originally published as T20 World Cup: Ireland defeat England by five runs on Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in stunning MCG upset
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