AUS vs IRE

Well, this is it. It’s a wrap! Australia will undoubtedly be a much happier side than Ireland, who are now staring at the inevitable prospect of an early exit. For continued action and entertainment, join us for the upcoming West Indies vs England clash, which promises to be an absolute thriller. We are a few minutes away from kick-off, so be sure to get there in before the first ball is bowled. This is Datrim signing off on behalf of Pradeep and everyone else at Sportskeeda. Goodbye, and see you soon!

Lorcan Tucker [Ireland's stand-in captain]: "(On Paul’s injury setback) Paul picked up a knock on his knee while taking that catch in the first innings. It was unfortunate to lose him at that stage. He showed courage to go back out and try to give us a start in the chase, but he wasn’t able to continue. Hopefully it’s nothing too serious and we can have him fit for the next game. (On missing him at the top and the chase overall) He’s been such a key player for us at the top of the order, so naturally it was a big blow while chasing 180. After that early setback, things seemed to unravel a little. We didn’t start as well as we would have liked, both with the ball and then in our own powerplay with the bat. (On assessing the match and conditions) We felt we had a good understanding of the surface after playing here recently. Australia got away from us early, but our spinners did a solid job of pulling things back in the middle overs. In the end, though, they managed the final phase expertly and pushed beyond what we felt was a par score. We thought 150 to 160 was a competitive target, but they handled the middle overs well and earned those extra runs. (On positives and staying alive in the tournament) George fought hard to try and bring us back into the contest, which was encouraging. Tournament cricket moves quickly, and there’s still plenty that can happen. We’re not out of this. The focus now is to stay positive, train well, and deliver a stronger performance in the next match."

Nathan Ellis is the Player of the Match! Here's what he has to say: "(On the pitch and adapting to conditions) It’s less about excitement for certain conditions and more about adapting to whatever you’re given. I’ve played here a few times and it can vary — some games have offered plenty of spin and slower surfaces through the middle. Watching earlier matches gave us a sense of what to expect, but for me it was about adjusting quickly and getting into rhythm. It’s been a long build-up, and after some time back home, I was just keen to get started. (On responsibility without senior quicks) We’ve spoken a lot about the absence of some senior fast bowlers, but over the past 18 months we’ve had plenty of opportunities to play together in bilateral series. Guys like Bartlett, Abbott and others have stepped in, so the group is familiar with each other. The preparation and planning leading into this tournament have been strong, and that gives us confidence to go deep even without some of the experienced names. (On variations and execution) After watching the early overs, it was clear there wasn’t much swing on offer, so that shaped how I approached my spells. Mixing pace — especially using the slower ball — became important. When I go pace-on, I try to hit the wicket hard and maintain arm speed to create as much difference as possible, giving myself a margin for error on these types of surfaces. (On Adam Zampa and the team effort) Adam Zampa was outstanding once again. He performs at such a high level so consistently that it’s easy to take him for granted, but he’s one of the best in the world. I also have to credit the middle-order partnership — their experience helped us post a competitive total, which allowed us to apply pressure early with the ball. It was a complete team effort and one we’re really pleased with."

6:26 PM local time and IST:  Australia have won by 67 runs

Marcus Stoinis - 45 (29) I Nathan Ellis - 4/12
George Dockrell -  41 (29)  | George Dockrell - 1/31

Australia open their account with a convincing 67-run win over Ireland in their T20 WC opener! Two successive losses have now put Ireland’s World Cup aspirations in jeopardy. Ireland were off to the worst possible start. Striling left the field in discomfort after facing the first ball. Following his departure, a procession of wickets followed. Tector departed shortly after, before Ellis wrecked the Irish top order with a double-wicket blast in his opening spell. Ellis further upped his ante and picked up a few more scalps along the way to seriously decimate the Irish top order.

By the end of the powerplay, the writing seemed to be on the wall for Ireland as they were only able to post 40 runs at the expense of 4 massive wickets. Nevertheless, Delany and Tucker tried to keep Ireland alive in the run chase. The duo took the attack to the Aussie bowlers by adding a valuable 23 runs in quick time. But the pair failed to stay abreast of the asking rate, and that is where they lost the game. Their resistance was short-lived as Zampa was able to break the fifth-wicket stand in his very first over of the spell. From then on, there was no point of return for Ireland as they lost all their momentum. The wheels began coming off when more spin was introduced, which further exacerbated their downward spiral.

Tucker (24 off 27) and Dockrell (41 off 29) joined hands to add a formidable 47-run stand towards the end to delay the inevitable. Their partnership might have had the intent but lacked the firepower, which allowed Australia to maintain their stranglehold right throughout the course of the run chase. Zampa found some late form with the ball and had a successful outing, ending with stunning figures of 4/23 in his four overs. 

16.5 Nathan Ellis to Barry McCarthy, OUT! PICKED OUT DEEP MID-WICKET! That should be it, Paul Stirling isn't coming out to bat and Australia kick off their World Cup campaign with a thumping win over Ireland! Back of a length on the off-stump, McCarthy pulled straight into the hands of Green who takes a dolly.

15.6 Adam Zampa to Matthew Humphreys, yet another googly, spun sharply back into the stumps. Humphreys goes back and clipped it past mid-wicket for just one.

15.5 Adam Zampa to Matthew Humphreys, APPEAL FOR A CATCH DOWN THE LEG-SIDE! Inglis is convinced. Australia review it. Another googly, spinning down the leg-side. Humphreys gets inside the line to sweep and might've feathered something on the way to the keeper.

UltraEdge comes up, no spike as the ball passes the bat and it misses the thigh pad too.

15.4 Adam Zampa to Mark Adair, OUT! HOLES OUT AT DEEP MID-WICKET! Zampa has his second wicket of the over, another one bites the dust for Ireland. Googly, was short and spinning into the batter. Adair early into the heave, hits it straight up and Connolly takes another simple catch.