Ireland defeated England by three wickets in the T20 World Cup 11 years after the 50-over World Cup in India, when rain halted their opponents’ sluggish 158-run pursuit. When the rain that had caused delays earlier in the game returned and did not abate in time for the game to continue, England was 105-5 after 14.3 overs, five runs under the DLS par score of 110.
After England labored to 29-3 in the powerplay and then 86-5 in the 14th over, Moeen Ali (24 no off 12) got going with three fours and a six, but the weather had the ultimate say as Ireland scored a significant victory and dashed their opponents’ title dreams. After Ireland plays Afghanistan, England will play a crucial match against the hosts and defending champions Australia at the same location on Friday (9 am UK time) (5am UK time).
With their bowling being sloppy for the opening 10 overs of the Ireland innings and their batting laborious until Moeen’s late burst, Buttler’s team will expect a significantly better showing against Australia. At the halfway point, England appeared to be the favorite after Ireland lost their last nine wickets for just 54 runs, falling from a promising 103-1 in the 12th over – supported by captain Andrew Balbirnie (62) and Lorcan Tucker (34) adding 82 from 57 balls for the second wicket – to 157 all out in 19.2 overs. Spinner Liam Livingstone (3-17) and seamer Mark Wood (3-34) shared six wickets.