Canada defeated Ireland to register their maiden win in the ongoing T20 World Cup history. Ireland, who seemed the favourite to pick up the win, struggled with the bat, leading to their defeat at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
Batting first, Canada looked to be in trouble right from the beginning. They were reduced to 53/4 and needed something special to come out of the trouble. That’s when Nicholas Kirton and Shreyas Movva took control of the situation. The duo stitched a partnership of 75 runs to bail Canada out. Kirton hit 49 runs off 35 balls and Movva made 37 runs off 36 deliveries to help post 137 runs on the board in the first innings.
When it came to the chase, the surface slowed down a bit and Canada took advantage of that. Their bowlers executed the plans really well as Ireland lost wickets like a house of cards. Towards the end, George Dockrell and Mark Adair showed some character but it was not enough. Canada managed to restrict Ireland to 12 5 runs, winning the match by 12 runs.
1. Canada’s comprehensive win
They started slow but the partnership of Kirton and Movva changed things for Canada. They looked really good with both bat and ball and eventually registered a massive win against a Test-playing nation. With the win, Canada moved to third on the points table and will play Pakistan next.
2. Lacklustre Ireland looked clueless with bat
Ireland’s bowlers did a reasonably well but their batters let them down. The Paul Stirling-led side lost too five wickets in a span of six overs, which ruined the match for them. They need to improve significantly to bounce back in the competition.
Losing skipper Paul Stirling said:
Tough loss today, we weren't at the races today. The target was gettable, we didn't think we'd struggle too much. We were off in all three facets today, we need to show a better game when we go to Miami and Florida. We don't want to look too far into the future, we've got USA next.
Winning skipper Saad Bin Zafar said:
Very proud moment for the team. The way Kirton and Movva batted, we knew we had a good total to defend. We needed a good performance from the bowling unit and I am so proud on my bowlers for putting their hand up and delivering. The wicket got a bit slow today, so it worked to our advantage. We gambled with an extra spinner and I feel both myself and Zunaid bowled really well. One game at a time, we need to enjoy this win and come back strong against Pakistan. We are here to play positive cricket.
POTM Nicholas Kirton said:
Bouncing back from the first game was important. Trust me, it wasn't that easy. Just tried to get in, get the pace of the wicket. Honestly it wasn't that bad. There was an area in the middle of the wicket that was a bit up and down, but otherwise it was a good wicket to bat on. Very good to get our first win in the WC. Hopefully we can continue from strength to strength. Our next focus is Pakistan. Two spinners bowled very well. Bit of purchase on offer. We spoke about adjusting pace and that area in the middle that was a bit up and down. Just taking it one day at a time.
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