ICC T20 World Cup: Ireland manage 128/8 against Sri Lanka
Ireland racked up 128/8 against Sri Lanka in the Super 12 match (Group 1) of the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup at the Bellerive Oval, Hobart. The Lankan bowlers were all over Ireland throughout the innings. Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga took two wickets apiece. Meanwhile, Harry Tector was Ireland's top scorer. Notably, SL have won seven of their last eight T20Is.
Ireland manage 40/2 in the Powerplay
Ireland lost skipper Andrew Balbirnie early after they elected to bat. Although Lorcan Tucker started with a crisp four, he could not last long. Theekshana dismissed him in the fifth over. Opener Paul Stirling plundered crucial runs in the final over of the Powerplay. Ireland managed 40 runs in the first six overs despite losing a couple of wickets.
Fifth batter to complete 3,100 T20I runs
Stirling kept Ireland afloat in the first eight overs. He played a valuable knock, a 25-ball 34 (4 fours, 1 six). Stirling has become just the fifth batter to complete 3,100 runs in T20I cricket. The right-handed Irish batter is behind Rohit Sharma (3,737), Virat Kohli (3,712), Martin Guptill (3,531), and Babar Azam (3,231) in terms of T20I runs.
Tector guides Ireland in the middle overs
If Stirling was the nucleus of Ireland's top order, youngster Harry Tector paved the way for them in the middle overs. The latter shared a 47-run stand with George Dockrell, guiding Ireland past 100. Tector, who is playing his 48th T20I, fell five short of what could have been his fourth fifty in the format. He also completed 800 runs in T20 Internationals.
Theekshana takes two wickets
Off-spinner Theekshana was the pick of Sri Lanka's bowlers. He sent back Tucker in the Powerplay before dismissing Dockrell in the 17th over. Theekshana conceded just 19 runs in four overs. He bowled as many as eight dot balls and gave away just one boundary (four). Later, leg-spinner Hasaranga bounced back, taking a couple of wickets in his final over.
