Ireland

Having seen Namibia stun Sri Lanka on Sunday, Scotland sealed a famous 42-run triumph against the two-time T20 world champions at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart on Monday.

It was the first T20I meeting between the teams and brought up Scotland's first win in the format this year. For the Windies, 2022 is now their worst year on record in terms of T20I defeats (14).

"Obviously it is a special win for us," said Scotland captain Richard Berrington, whose side snapped a seven-game losing run in T20Is. "It took a lot of work and has given us belief."

While the credit will go to Scotland's brilliant bowlers, opening batter George Munsey set the tone with an unbeaten 66.

Munsey struck nine boundaries as he stayed at the crease throughout Scotland's innings, guiding them to 160-5 as the Windies bowlers failed to get going.

Jason Holder was the pick of the bunch with 2-14 from three overs, moving him onto 48 T20I wickets, but Odean Smith (1-31) and Akeal Hosein (0-31) struggled to make the same impact.

Holder was the only Windies batter to step up and be counted, too, with his 38 the only score above 20 for Nicholas Pooran's team.

Watt was fantastic, claiming 3-12 – his first wicket, when he bowled the dangerous Brandon King, sparking a collapse as the Windies lost six for just 21 runs to fall from 58-2 to 79-7.

Leask claimed his two wickets – Pooran and Rovman Powell – as part of that run, and West Indies' defeat was confirmed when Chris Greaves plucked Holder's stray shot. 

"Tough loss for us, obviously disappointed," said Pooran, who must rally the Windies for matches against Zimbabwe and Ireland.

"We have to work hard and win two games. We have to take accountability and responsibility."

A dismal performance by the Caribbean side saw them post 146-5 in their final first-round pool match, before Ireland raced to 150-1 to win with 15 balls to spare.

Victory carried Ireland through to the Super 12 stage, joining Netherlands and Sri Lanka in advancing from the first round, with one further place to be decided later on Friday.

Brandon King, back from illness, made 62 not out for the Windies but found little by way of substantial support, with Ireland spinner Gareth Delany snagging 3-16 from his four overs.

West Indies are the only team to have won this World Cup twice, taking the 2012 and 2016 titles, but their total against Ireland looked on the low side.

Ireland confirmed that as they encountered little trouble in streaking to victory, with Paul Stirling rattling along to 66 not out from 48 balls at the top of the order. Captain Andy Balbirnie made 37 and Lorcan Tucker finished unbeaten on 45, cracking the winning four to complete the job.

Man of the match Delany said: "It's obviously an incredible day for us."

Saturday will mark a year to the day since Ireland lost to Namibia in their final first-round game at the 2021 edition of this tournament, meaning they were eliminated, and Delany said that had been "one of the toughest days for a lot of us".

"To get over the line today in the fashion that we did was amazing," Delany added.

Skipper Balbirnie said: "It means everything. We had a really disappointing loss last year at this same stage. We did a lot of thinking, a lot of things changed back home. Different personnel came in, a new coach [Heinrich Malan].

"Losing the first game [to Zimbabwe] and then coming back and beating a two-time champion in a must-win game, I couldn't be prouder."

Topley has not played at international level since the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 tournament in India after being hit hard by injuries, but the left-arm paceman is poised to return at the Rose Bowl. 

No members of the Test side have been selected given the final match against West Indies only finishes on Tuesday, with the first of three one-dayers starting behind closed doors 48 hours later. 

Batsman Phil Salt misses out despite smashing a century off only 58 balls in England Lions' victory over Ireland in Southampton on Sunday. 

Joe Denly is included, however, after being dropped from the Test side. David Willey is also back in the squad, while there is a spot for Tom Banton.

England selector James Taylor said: "We are developing excellent strength in depth in white-ball cricket. Even though a number of Test players are unavailable, there is great competition for places, as we have seen during the intra-squad matches and the England Lions warm-up match.

"There are a number of players who'll feel unlucky not to have made the final squad and that says a lot about how many players we currently have pushing hard for selection at the highest level.

"These ODIs against Ireland are an opportunity to continue the exciting evolution of the ODI side, while also looking towards the T20 World Cup in 2021.

"In this challenging season, everyone at England appreciates the hard work and dedication of the county coaches and support staff who have helped these players to get ready for competitive cricket."

England ODI squad: Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Joe Denly, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Reece Topley, James Vince, David Willey.

Reserves: Richard Gleeson, Lewis Gregory, Liam Livingstone.

Only an Ireland victory over tournament co-hosts USA could have prevented the Americans' progress to the next round, but no play was possible on Friday amid a flash-flood emergency in the region.

There were multiple pitch inspections, but the umpires ultimately concluded no play was possible due to the wet outfield.

USA secured a win over Canada in the opening match of the tournament before pulling off an almighty upset to beat Pakistan, who are now eliminated because of the washout, as are Canada.

The outcome also means Ireland are out, although their hopes had already looked slim after losses to India and Canada.

India are expected to finish top of Group A, having beaten USA in their last match to secure a third successive victory. 

Rohit Sharma's side will do battle with Australia, Afghanistan and a team from Group D – most likely to be Bangladesh – in the next round, though they still have one more pool match to play against Canada on Saturday.

USA are poised to enter Group 2 of the Super 8s along with fellow hosts West Indies and South Africa. The final spot in that section will be filled by either England or Scotland, depending on who progresses from Group B.

As a result of reaching the Super 8s in this competition, Monank Patel's USA team are also now guaranteed qualification to the 2026 T20 World Cup, which will be held in India and Sri Lanka.

On Friday, a dominant half-century from veteran opener Paul Stirling put an end to the campaign of the Caribbean team, in the first round of the tournament.  Stirling’s 66 from 48 deliveries led the Irish to a resounding 9-wicket win with 15 balls remaining and a spot in the Super-12.

The result confirmed a far fall for the West Indies, the two-time champions of the event lost two of three matches to teams who came through the qualification phase.  Once again, the Windies struggled with the bat on what looked like a fair surface, limping to 146 for 5 in their 20 overs, before Ireland easily moved down the total, with a little application, proving there were no demons in the pitch.

"It’s obviously a learning experience.  We have disappointed our fans back home and most importantly disappointed ourselves,” Pooran said following the match.

“It’s definitely hurting.  I definitely disappointed the guys in how I performed as well but we live to see another day,” he added.

In continuation of a general theme in the format this year, the team continued to find runs at the crease hard to come by and were well bogged down by the Ireland strategy.  Brandon King ended the innings unbeaten for the West Indies on 62 from 48.

“We haven’t batted well in this tournament at all.  On a really good batting surface coming out here and making 145 it was always difficult to ask the bowlers to defend that on this track.”

Top-order batsman Shimron Hetmyer was dropped from the team’s line-up for the third One Day International (ODI) against Ireland, on the back of what has been general frustration with the looseness of his stroke play in the first two matches of the series.

On Sunday, however, the skipper seemed to make it clear the move was just a temporary one with Hetmyer expected to return to the team’s line-up later this week.  In the two ODI games played, Hetmyer made 14 runs and was caught on both occasions after questionable shots.

“We spoke about working hard and the discipline and what is required for the team.  He is a very important player for us and it is a discussion that we had.  We need him to settle down and bat the way that we know he can bat.  In India he did it very well for us,” Pollard said following the match.

“These things happen, it just goes to show the dynamics of the team we have, Sunil coming in and getting that opportunity as well.  We want guys to be very, very hungry because there are other guys knocking on the door so we can’t relax and take anything for granted,” he added.

“At the end of the day, all is well that ends well.  He is a jovial guy.  He has helped out throughout the day and we look forward to him making runs in the T20 series.”

In pursuit of 270 for victory, captain Andrew Balbirnie and William Porterfield strode to the crease to begin Ireland’s reply.

Their chase got off to the worst possible start as experienced opener Porterfield was dismissed for a duck by Akeal Hosein in the second over to leave them at 1-1.

Andrew McBrine joined Balbirnie at the crease and the pair carefully carried the score to 30-1 after 10 overs.

McBrine, unfortunately, had to leave the field at the end of the 17^th over, on 34 from 50 balls, after being struck on the helmet by Odean Smith with the score on 62-1.

Harry Tector came to the crease to join Balbirnie and the two brought the score to 74-1 at the end of 20 overs with Balbirnie on 31 and Tector on three.

Ireland brought up their hundred with only one wicket down in the 25^th over with Balbirnie and Tector on 46 and 12, respectively.

Balbirnie brought up his 13^th ODI 50 off 74 balls in the 27^th over.

After 30 overs, Ireland was cruising at 134-1 with Balbirnie on 60 and Tector on 32.

Balbirnie (66) and Tector (42) continued scoring freely to bring up Ireland’s 150 in the 33^rd over.

Tector brought up his fifth ODI 50 off 62 balls in the 35^th over.

At the start of the 36^th over, Balbirnie and Tector brought up their 100-partnership.

The West Indies finally got the breakthrough they were looking for when Romario Shepherd removed Balbirnie for 71 off 94 balls in the 37^th over to leave Ireland 165-2.

Odean Smith got his first ODI wicket in the 38^th over by removing Harry Tector for 53 to leave the tourists 173-3 needing 97 more to win from 75 balls.

Curtis Campher then became Shepherd’s second wicket when he was dismissed for six in the 39^th over to leave Ireland 173-4.

After 40 overs, Ireland was 178-4 needing 92 from 60 balls to win with Lorcan Tucker on 3 and George Dockrell on 2.

Tucker was next to go, bowled by Alzarri Joseph for 9 in the 42^nd over, to leave the score at 186-5.

Joseph then bowled a perfect yorker to dismiss Gareth Delaney in the 44^th over for his second wicket to leave Ireland on 194-6 needing 76 from 37 balls to win.

Neil Rock came in as a concussion substitute for McBrine and helped Ireland bring up their 200 in the 45^th over with four wickets in hand.

After a promising partnership with Dockrell, Rock was dismissed by Jason Holder in the 47^th over for five to leave Ireland 222-7 needing 48 from 20 balls to win.

Dockrell gave the West Indies something to think about late on with some big shots but was eventually dismissed by Joseph in the 48^th over for 30 from 25 balls to leave Ireland on 237-8, needing 33 from 14 to win.

Shepherd then got his third wicket of the innings, removing Craig Young for a duck in the 49^th over to leave the score at 239-9.

The win was secured when Nicholas Pooran took a brilliant diving catch on the boundary off Odean Smith to dismiss Josh Little and secure a 24-run victory.

Alzarri Joseph and Romario Shepherd took three wickets each for the West Indies and they were supported by debutant Odean Smith who got two.

Earlier, Ireland won the toss and put the West Indies in to bat.

Shamarh Brooks (93) and captain Kieron Pollard (69) were the chief destroyers as the West Indies finished 269 all out off 48.5 overs, against three-wicket hauls from Mark Adair and Craig Young.

Brooks was voted Player of the Match.

This will be Ireland’s second full white-ball tour to the West Indies having previously toured in 2020 which included a thrilling one-wicket, last-over win for the West Indies in the second match of the 2020 CG Insurance ODI Series.

 “We are looking forward to welcoming Ireland back to the West Indies in January. They last visited the Caribbean in 2020 and we had some exciting encounters, so we can anticipate a competitive series to start the new year,” said CWI CEO Johnny Grave.

“This will be the start of a very busy year for us at CWI, as we host several international teams as well as the ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup.

“We want to thank the Government of Jamaica and our colleagues at the Jamaica Cricket Association, who have been working closely with us to make sure that the tour can take place safely and smoothly. We’d also like to thank title sponsors CG Insurance for their ongoing support and investment in cricket, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, as it has been vital funding to help us to sustain the sport across our Caribbean countries and communities.”

Naz Farrow, CEO of CG Insurance said his company is happy to be able to support CWI during these challenging times.

“When we first began our partnership a few years ago, we would have never imagined that the teams, and the world, were about to face one of the biggest challenges of this generation,” he said.

“Throughout the pandemic, we have been thrilled to see the players and teams work through the various obstacles to constantly deliver world-class cricket. Even now, as Ireland joins to play the ODIs in January, we are proud to continue to support CWI, and this series, and look forward to these exciting matches in 2022.”

The CG Insurance ODI Series between West Indies and Ireland will be West Indies fifth ODI series out of the 12 in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League, in which the top seven teams can secure automatic qualification for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.

The CG Insurance ODIs will start at 9:30 am local time (10:30 am Eastern Caribbean/2:30 pm Ireland) and the T20I will start at 4 pm local time (5 pm Eastern Caribbean/9 pm Ireland). All matches will be available in Ireland and the United Kingdom on BT Sport on its sports channels and across its digital platforms.

Match schedule – at Sabina Park

January 8: 1st CG Insurance ODI – 9:30 am (10:30 am Eastern Caribbean/2:30 pm Ireland)

January 11: 2nd CG Insurance ODI – 9:30 am (10:30 am Eastern Caribbean/2:30 pm Ireland)

January 14: 3rd CG Insurance ODI – 9:30 am (10:30 am Eastern Caribbean/2:30 pm Ireland)

January 16: T20I International – 4 pm (5 pm Eastern Caribbean/9 pm Ireland).

England's Test players were unavailable due to their endeavours against West Indies, meaning an entirely different ODI XI was given the chance to prove their credentials, and Willey certainly rose to the occasion.

The 29-year-old was left out of England's World Cup squad last year, but in Southampton he provided a reminder of his qualities with an exceptional 5-30, his first five-wicket haul in ODI cricket.

It did not take Willey long to find his groove, taking out Paul Stirling (2) and Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie (3) in the first three overs.

Three successive fours – which were soon followed by another pair – from Gareth Delany (22) at least gave Ireland a little momentum, but he too fell victim to Willey having just seen Mahmood (2-36) deal with Harry Tector (0), and Lorcan Tucker (0) followed them just two balls later in the sixth.

Curtis Campher (59 not out) and Kevin O'Brien (22) steadied the ship with some conservative batting, staving off the England attack for 14 full overs, but the latter eventually paid the price for opting to alter their mentality.

Like Tector and Tucker, Simi Singh returned to the pavilion without a run to his name, and although Andy McBrine's solid 40 helped he and Campher put up a decent defence, Ireland were eventually skittled in the 45th over when Jason Roy caught Craig Young to secure Willey's fifth wicket.

England's chase did not begin particularly emphatically, as they found themselves at 36-2 after the sixth over – Roy (24) and Jonny Bairstow (2) the early casualties.

Tucker then caught Vince (25) off Young in the 10th over, but England's wobble effectively ended with his replacement, Billings, who impressed with an unbeaten 67, which included 11 fours.

England lost Tom Banton (11), but captain Eoin Morgan (36 not out) came in and ultimately sealed a comfortable victory as he blasted Singh's delivery for six – the hosts reaching 174 runs in the 28th over with six wickets to spare.

The Caribbean side was beaten by Ireland, in a One Day International series, for the first time in their history earlier this week.  The team had a poor showing all-around but as has become custom in recent times their substandard display at the crease was noticeable.

The team struggled to come to grips with not just the surface, but also the Irish bowlers, particularly Andy McBrine who took 10 wickets over the three games. O’Brien believes a major part of the issues at the crease stems from the batting unit’s outdated philosophy of run-scoring.

“The West Indies, they’re playing a very old school type of cricket.  They just stand around in the crease and either block or try to hit the ball for four or six.  Unfortunately, when you are playing international cricket that doesn’t happen very often.  Very rarely do you see a West Indies batter come down the pitch, using their feet, knock it to long-on, or long-off for singles, rotate the strike, or manipulate the field.  We saw very few sweeps, when Shamarh Brooks did play a sweep he was out lbw,” O'Brien told the Mason and Guest radio show.

“When you’re a batter if you’re going to stand in the crease waiting for a bad ball, this is international cricket, the bad balls don’t come very often…It’s a technical thing, it’s a tactical thing…it’s something for West Indies cricket, it’s been a pattern for many, many years they don’t play spin very well.  They really on their brute force and teams are getting more clever with how to go about that.”

In an extraordinary finish at Kensington Oval, the Windies went past their target of 238 with one ball remaining in the second ODI.

Sheldon Cottrell hit a six off the second last ball of the innings to give the hosts a 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

But Ireland were left to lament what could have been after an incredible finish to the contest.

Paul Stirling (63) had guided Ireland to 237-9 after they elected to bat first, with Alzarri Joseph (4-32) again starring for the Windies.

Rain delays impacted the Windies' chase as Nicholas Pooran (52) and Kieron Pollard (40) looked to have them on track for victory.

Hayden Walsh made an unbeaten 46, but it still took a nervy finish for the hosts to get over the line.

Ireland almost found a decisive run out off the third ball of the final over, but replays were inconclusive as to whether Mark Adair broke the stumps with the ball or his hands with Cottrell well short of his ground.

They should have sealed victory off the next ball after a mix up between Walsh and Cottrell but, with both batsmen almost stranded at one end, the latter recovered after Adair was unable to cleanly take a throw.

That would be Ireland's last chance as Cottrell smashed a six over covers off the next ball to clinch victory.

The final game of the series is at St George's on Saturday.

The win was not just the Irish team’s first triumph over the West Indies in an ODI series, but the come-from-behind victory was only the second over a full member team. Prior to that, the team defeated Zimbabwe at home in 2019.

After dismissing the West Indies for just 212, the Irish survived a late-game wobble but still had enough to get over the line after getting to 214-8 in the 45^th over.

The effort was anchored by half-centuries from Andy McBrine and Harry Tector.

Earlier, the West Indies were off to a fast with Shai Hope cracking 53 from just 39 balls at the top of the innings, as he did the majority of the scoring in an opening stand of 72 in 11 overs with Justin Greaves.  However, things fell apart when he and Greaves were caught off the bowling of Craig Young in quick succession.  The hosts went on to lose the next three wickets for just four runs as the middle order collapsed when Nicholas Pooran, Shamarh Brooks, and skipper Kieron Pollard all spent very little time at the crease.

Jason Holder ensured at least a competitive score with an impressive 44 but was run out, with West Indies all out for 212.  Odean Smith remained unbeaten on 20 from 10 balls.

India captain Rohit retired hurt after making 52 in the second innings in New York as Rahul Dravid's side chased a 97-run target with more than seven overs to spare.

The opening batter was struck on the upper arm by a vicious Josh Little delivery in the ninth over, subsequently leaving the field before Rishabh Pant's 36 not out eased India over the line.

Rohit conceded the pain remained in his post-match interview before focusing on the positives of his team's bowling showing, with Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh all impressing.

He said: "Just a little sore. New ground, new venue, wanted to see what it's like to play on; I don't think the pitch settled down, there was enough there for the bowlers.

"Stick to your basics, think about Test match bowling. Arshdeep can swing the ball into the right-handers and that set the tone.

"If the conditions are there for the seamers, we wanted them in the squad. The spinners will play their part later in the tournament. We are open to making changes to the team's needs."

Bumrah produced a blistering spell, taking two wickets for just six runs from his three overs as Ireland limped to 96 all out in New York.

"When you come here and the ball is seaming around with some bounce and pace, I would never complain," Bumrah added. "You have to be proactive, you can't preempt things.

"You realise how the wicket is and then go back to what works for you. Once the seam goes down the pitch does settle down.

"You have to be prepared to bowl in all conditions, so very happy today."

India meet fierce rivals Pakistan on Sunday after their opening World Cup victory, and Rohit expects his team to be flexible once again dependent on conditions.

"I don't know what to expect from the pitch but we will prepare as if conditions are going to be like that," Rohit continued.

"That will be a game where all 11 of us need to come together and contribute.

"It was scratchy but good to spend time in the middle, hopefully we can do the same [against Pakistan]."

Rain stopped play with Afghanistan on 133-5 after 15 overs, needing 40 runs from 30 balls as they chased down a victory target of 173 in Greater Noida, India.

Afghanistan beat West Indies in their most recent T20I series and Zadran ensured they got over the line on Friday, his 42 runs from 21 balls coming in a crucial partnership of 63 with Samiullah Shinwari (28).

Paul Stirling (60) and Kevin O'Brien (35) had earlier given Ireland an electric start, though their innings lost momentum after the openers had been dismissed, with Rashid recording impressive figures of 3-22 from his four overs.