Ireland defeated England at Melbourne Wednesday to cause one of the biggest upsets in the T20 World Cup. Defending a total of 157, the Irish side received a fair bit of luck as the rain-curtailed England’s run chase. With the Duckworth-Lewis method coming into play, Ireland won the game by 5 runs, sending social media into a frenzy. The Irish fans, as expected, were elated with their team’s victory in the Super 12 stage. However, they were not alone in celebrating it. Some Indian fans found a 2011 connection to the result and suggested that Ireland’s victory may be a good omen for India’s campaign in the tournament. The last time Ireland triumphed over England in a World Cup game was in 2011, India lifted the title trophy that year.
Last time Ireland beat England in a World Cup, this happened 😍🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/NWoNrsguNS
— 𝐀𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐯. (@Arnav_Tweetz7) October 26, 2022
Let’s look at a few more tweets:
#dhoni bhai aapka knowladge to kamal ka h😱🥳🥳🥳🥳#ENGvIRE #T20WC2022 #TeamIndia #WorldCup2022 #Ireland pic.twitter.com/wPFbHMedas
— CRICKETWITHCHETAN (@CRICWITHCHETAN) October 26, 2022
Something Is Fishy 🤞🤞🤞🤞
2011 – Ireland beat England… India won the World Cup
2022 – Ireland beat England… Fingers crossed
Waiting It's Our Boys Turn To Conquer 😢😢🙏🏻🔥#IndianCricketTeam #ViratKohli #RohitSharma𓃵 #BCCI #Ireland #ENGvIRE pic.twitter.com/stVmETIYsP
— 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐕𝐯𝐕 (@VVVprabhaScult) October 26, 2022
Put in to bat first, Ireland got off to a blistering start, with skipper Andrew Balbirnie going all gun blazing against the English attack. After Paul Stirling got out after contributing 14 runs, Balbirnie and Lorcan Tucker added 102 runs together. Scoring at over 9 runs per over, the Irish team looked set for a big total before Tucker’s runout triggered a batting collapse. From 8 wickets in hand after the 12th over, Ireland were bowled out for 157 in 19.2 overs.
England had the momentum in their favour at the end of the first innings. However, the Irish bowlers brought their side back into the contest with early wickets. England were reeling at 29/3 before the end of the powerplay. A resilient 35 off 37 deliveries by Dawid Malan kept alive in the game before the rain god interrupted the match.
With some help from the DLS method, Ireland opened its win account in the tournament and has moved to the fourth spot in Group 1.
England is now set to play against Australia on Friday, October 28. One more defeat may jeopardize the 50-over world champions’ chances to be in the semis of the T20 World Cup.