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Austria v Ireland, ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier, 23 July 2023

Lorcan Tucker scored an unbeaten 94 as Ireland Men posted their highest T20I total - comfortably making it three wins from three in the ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier with a 128-run victory over Austria at the Grange Cricket Club.
Tucker’s innings was a career best T20I score, while Neil Rock’s quickfire 36 was his highest total in the format and Mark Adair took career-best T20I figures of 4-13.
It was also Ireland’s biggest ever margin of victory in T20Is – beating the previous best of 98-runs against Scotland in 2017.
Captain Paul Stirling lost his third straight toss and Ireland were sent in to bat first. There was one change to the starting line-up, as Ireland took to the field without Andrew Balbirnie, after he was ruled out of the game as a precaution after picking up a slight niggle in the warm-up. Ross Adair coming in to replace him alongside Stirling at the top of the order.
Austria came into the game off the back of heavy defeats to Germany and Jersey, while Ireland had back-to-back victories over Italy and Denmark.
In cold and windy conditions, Austria started with their spinner Amit Nathwani – while his opening delivery surprised Ross Adair and almost knocked over the Northern Knights’ opener, Adair proceeded to smash his second delivery for six towards long on giving impetus to the Irish batting assault.
Austria did manage an early breakthrough when their captain Razmal Shigiwal claimed a great catch off Nathwani’s bowling in the third over to end Stirling’s innings on nine. However, Adair and Tucker then combined well as Ireland moved on to 75-1 at the end of the power play.
Their partnership of 65 ended when Adai, on 46, was beaten by a brilliant yorker from left-arm medium pacer Abdullah Akbarjan.
Player of the Match Tucker kept playing his shots, driving balls to the off-side, sweeping down leg side, blasting sixes over the leg-side boundary, and clipping balls over the wicket-keeper for four. He brought up his sixth career T20I half-century in the twelfth over, off just 29 balls, with a single to extra-cover.
Harry Tector fell to catch by Mark Simpson-Parker at long-on, with Ireland 138-3 in the 14th over.
Neil Rock came in at number five and scored his highest T20I score with a six down towards third - passing his previous best of 22 - but was fortunate to continue as he was dropped by Iqbal with the very next ball. His partnership of 71 with Tucker eventually came to an end when Rock was beaten by a slower ball from Iqbal.
Austria would eventually rue three dropped catches as Ireland finished up with 226-4, one run higher than their previous best of 225-7 against Afghanistan in 2013.
Ireland’s bowlers got their defence off to the perfect start, with Mark Adair taking a wicket with his first ball, as Curtis Campher grabbed the ball at backward point to remove Iqbal Hossain. Josh Little then forced Mark Simpson-Parker into feathering an edge to Tucker in the fourth over.
Austria captain Shigiwal, who came in at number three, scored freely, and hit their first six down to fine-leg off the bowling of Campher.
Shigiwal’s innings came to an end on 33, after Little was brought back into the attack, slapping one straight to Rock at mid-wicket.
Three wickets then fell in ten balls, as Mark Adair, Ben White, and Barry McCarthy all took wickets, reducing Austria to 56-6.
Austria did construct a nice partnership of 37 - their highest of the day - between Iqbal and Mehar Cheema, before Campher returned and removed both in the space of five balls in the eighteenth over.
Mark Adair finished off the tail with back-to-back wickets as Austria were bowled out for 98 with eight balls remaining.
MATCH SUMMARY
Ireland 226-4 (20 overs; L Tucker 94*, R Adair 46; A Iqbal 2-47)
Austria 98 (18.4 overs; R Shigiwal 33, A Iqbal 29; M Adair 4-13)

Ireland won by 128 runs

Denmark v Ireland, ICC T20 World Cup Europe , 21 July 2023
Half-centuries from openers Andrew Balbirnie and Paul Stirling secured a comprehensive nine-wicket victory for Ireland Men in their second match of the ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifiers at the Grange Cricket Club.
It was an excellent all-round performance from Ireland, with the bowling attack of Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Ben White, and Curtis Campher all taking wickets.
Ireland started the day with an unchanged line-up from Thursday’s win over Italy, while Denmark took the field minus their captain Hamid Shah, having had to return home for personal reasons. They did include Nicolaj Laegsgaard, who plays in Ireland for The Hills Cricket Club, and who has also featured for the Munster Reds in the Rario Inter-Provincial competition.
After winning the toss Denmark opted to bat first, and opener Laegsgaard took the game to Josh Little in the second over, following up a six with a boundary down towards the leg-side as Denmark moved on to 22-0 after two overs.
McCarthy made the breakthrough when Musa Shaheen nicked one behind to Lorcan Tucker with just his fourth delivery, before Adair took the big wicket of Laegsgaard (20) in the fourth over, when he skied a slower delivery straight down the throat of Balbirnie, with Denmark 29-2.
McCarthy was causing all sorts of problems for the Danish batters in his opening two-over spell, and forced a leading edge from Taranjit Bharaj to Ben White at third, who took a nice catch.
White continued Ireland’s impressive bowling when he removed Saif Ahmad, as Denmark found it hard to build any notable partnerships, and at the midway point of their innings were struggling on 59-4.
Oliver Hald, who also plays his cricket in Ireland with Phoenix CC, showed plenty of resolve at number eight, scoring 21, before Mark Adair was brought back in the 18th over and removed him first ball.
Ireland were very clinical with their bowling – with the slower ball doing most of the damage – McCarthy (3-16) and Adair (3-22) the most economical, as Denmark finish on 122-9.
Ireland captain Stirling opened the batting for Ireland alongside Balbirnie, and they got off to a similar start to the Danes, with 32 runs on the board after the first three overs. Stirling’s fast hands brought up three successive boundaries, while two excellent slog-sweeps from Balbirnie went for six.
The fifty came up as Balbirnie smashed a boundary on the leg side, as they quickly moved onto 52-0 after five overs.
Both openers did have some good fortune, as Stirling was dropped by Hald, while Balbirnie was dropped on 41 after Denmark introduced spin and almost made an immediate impact.
Balbirnie scored his ninth T20I half-century, off 35 balls, with the last ball of the tenth over, hitting a single to long-off. However he departed in the next over while trying to scoop the ball over the wicketkeeper, and the ball crashed into the stumps.
Stirling scored a fifty of his own - his 23rd career T20I half-century - off 38 balls, including nine fours, before he and Tucker steered Ireland home with 5.3 overs to spare.
MATCH SUMMARY
Denmark 122-9 (20 overs; O Hald 21, N Laegsgaard 20; B McCarthy 3-16)
Ireland 123-1 (14.3 overs; P Stirling 55*, A Balbirnie 53; J Henricksen 1-28)
Ireland won by 9 wickets

Italy v Ireland, ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier, Goldenacre, Edinburgh, Scotland, 20 July 2023

A quickfire half-century from Curtis Campher helped Ireland Men to victory over Italy in their opening game of the ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier at Goldenacre today.
After stumbling to 46-3 in the eighth over, Ireland’s innings was bolstered by a 76-run fourth-wicket partnership between Campher and Harry Tector (playing in his 100th international match).
After losing the toss, Ireland was sent in to bat, losing captain Paul Stirling early for 2 and Lorcan Tucker for 8, beaten by an excellent yorker which removed his middle stump.
Italy were very sharp in the field early on, and Cork County’s Stefanos di Bartolomeo (making his Italy debut) almost took a blinder of a catch off an Andrew Balbirnie sweep. While Balbirnie survived the scare he didn’t survive the next ball - clean bowled by Jaspreet Singh for 26.
It was then that Tector and Campher came together. They settled quickly into a nice rhythm, spraying the ball around the ground with ease, posting 76-runs between them. Tector passed 1,000 career T20I runs during his innings of 41 – becoming only the sixth Irishman to do so. When he fell, adjudged LBW to Henry Manenti, Ireland was 122-4 in the 17th over.
Campher brought up his fifty with a reverse scoop shot towards third for a boundary. He was dropped very next ball, but followed it up with a six off the next delivery. However, his luck ran out when he slapped one straight to Anthony Mosca and was walking back to the pavilion for 61 from 39 balls. Several late wickets fell, and Ireland finished on 158-8.
In response Italy found themselves three wickets down at the end of the powerplay, with Mark Adair and Josh Little taking the wickets of Benjamin Manenti and Marcus Campopiano, while Justin Mosca was run out by an excellent throw from George Dockrell in the deep, while attempting a third run.
Ben White then came on and trapped Anthony Mosca LBW in his first over. Despite being four wickets down, Italy were well ahead of Ireland at the midway point of their innings - 74-4 compared to 59-
Harry Manenti and Gina-Piero Meade took the game to Ireland and brought up a 50-run partnership in the 12th over, but both were removed in the space of three balls by White and Campher as Italy were reduced to 94-6.
After a good performance with the ball, Jaspreet Singh backed that up with the bat as he tried valiantly to bring Italy close to their target. However, Little removed him in the 17th over with a delivery that ricocheted off his pads and onto the stumps, with Italy 122-7 and Ireland’s bowling attack on top.
Adair came back into the attack and claimed the wickets of Syed Naqvi and Gareth Berg as Italy finished seven runs short of their target, with Adair claiming 3-33.
Ireland will return to action tomorrow morning where they will face Denmark at the Grange Cricket Club, with a 10.30am start (Ireland time).
MATCH SUMMARY
Ireland 158-8 (20 overs; C Campher 61, H Tector 41; G Berg 3-24)
Italy 151-9 (20 overs; G Berg 26 GP Meade 26; M Adair 3-33)
Ireland won by 7 runs

Ireland Women battled hard but ultimately fell to an eight-wicket loss in Game Two of the three-match T20 International (T20I) series against West Indies at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground today.
Ireland captain Laura Delany won the toss and decided to bat first – but despite some positive intent in the opening overs, Ireland soon suffered a double blow with Gaby Lewis (2) and Orla Prendergast (2) both falling early. Lewis was the first of four run outs in the Irish innings as the Girls in Green finished on 113-7 from 20 overs – one run more than their score in the first match of the series on Tuesday.
Amy Hunter impressed in a return to form striking 33 from 25 balls, which included four boundaries. The 17-year old Belfast opener was the only batter that seemed to get to grips with conditions playing a mix of deft shots behind square on either side, and several ‘aerial route’ shots which underscored her growing confidence as her innings progressed.
Delany (20), Eimear Richardson (16), Rebecca Stokell (15) and Arlene Kelly (13) all got starts, but wickets fell regularly, denying the visitors the chance to build a competitive total.
In reply, Windies skipper Hayley Matthews top-scored again, this time with 50, as her side powered to victory with 20 balls to spare.
While a fairly straightforward run chase, there was one moment of mild controversy when Matthews struck an uppish cover drive to Lewis’ left. The Dubliner lunged low and appeared to get her hands under the ball, but in the next frame of the replay the ball looked to have bobbled out of Lewis’ grip and touch the grass before the fielder scooped the ball up again. It was a close call, but after several minutes of replay reviewing by the third umpire, not out was given.
The two sides meet again on Saturday at the same venue for the last of three T20Is.
MATCH SUMMARY
West Indies Women v Ireland Women, 2nd T20I, St Lucia, 6 July 2023
Ireland 113-7 (20 overs: A Hunter 33, L Delany 20; C Fraser 1-16)
West Indies 114-2 (16.4 overs; H Matthews 50; L Delany 1-12)
West Indies won by 8 wickets

Harare, 4 July.

Ireland 7th in the World Cup Qualifying...just about!

Ireland barely made it to defeat Nepal, as it went to the last over. In this tournament a win is a win, but there's plenty to reflect on what could have happened in the past few weeks. One thing is certain, there are no minnows as West Indies, Zimbabwe and Ireland took a tumble in the process. Scotland and Netherlands were on a high and Oman and Nepal had their moments too.
Back to porridge for Ireland with India looming in August. Let India bat first and at least the fans will enjoy their day out. We are not at this level by a mile!
Match Summary
Nepal 268-9 (50 overs; G Jha 57*, A Saud 48, K Malla 44, S Lamichhane 32, R Paudel 29; C Young 2-36, M Adair 2-47, B McCarthy 2-63)
Ireland 269-8 (49.2 overs; C Campher 62, H Tector 60, G Dockrell 33; Karan KC 3-55, K Mahato 2-55)

Ireland won by 2 wickets

Unlucky Ireland goes down in last ball thriller against West Indies

ST LUCIA – Ireland Women fought back in a low-scoring contest but fell just short of what would have been a remarkable win in the first T20 International (T20I) against West Indies at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground today.
Ireland started sprightly after being put in to bat first with 28 runs flowing from the first 23 balls of the innings, courtesy of openers Gaby Lewis (17) and Amy Hunter (15). Both batters looked comfortable early, finding the boundary four times as the visitors looked to set the pace.
However, the pair were soon back in the pavilion within five balls of each other and the bowlers then set about drying up the runs. Captain Laura Delany (34) and Eimear Richardson (22) put on 31 for the fourth wicket, but looking to accelerate, Richardson was caught at square leg.
Delany battled hard, striking two boundaries and a six over long off, but she eventually fell in the last over and Ireland finished 112-7 from 20 overs – seven runs shy of what is considered par score for the ground.
The West Indies reply started badly with a batting mix up leading to a run out by Orla Prendergast – the Pembroke all-rounder chased the ball in her follow-through, spun around and threw down the stumps at the non-strikers end.

Hayley Matthews (37) led the batting recovery as the home side made their way to 40-1 in the 9th over. Quick hands by Hunter behind the stumps removed Gajnabi – and a second direct hit run out by Prendergast – saw West Indies stumble again at 59-3 in the 13th over.
With tension building, the last seven overs saw the momentum of the game shift radically – runs flowed but regular wickets tumbled, including great piece of bowling by T20I debutant Aimee Maguire (1-18). The 16-year old left-arm spinner was smashed to the boundary by Afy Fletcher off the third ball of her third over, but bounced back with a ball that was faster, flatter and deceived Fletcher and crashed into her leg stump.
With one over to go the West Indies needed 7 to win with three wickets in hand. Cara Murray was handed the ball and snared a wicket with the third ball, but Ireland’s dreams of a come-from-behind win were shattered with a wide and a single off the last ball saw the Caribbean side triumph by two wickets off the last ball.
The two sides meet again on Thursday at the same venue for the second of three T20Is.
MATCH SUMMARY
Ireland 112-7 (20 overs: L Delany 34, E Richardson 22; H Matthews 3-22)
West Indies 113-8 (20 overs; H Matthews 37; A Kelly 3-21)
West Indies won by 2 wickets

Balbirnie steps down as white-ball captain; Stirling named interim captain

HARARE- Ireland Men’s captain Andrew Balbirnie has this evening announced that he will step down from the captaincy of the One-Day International and T20 International squads effective immediately. Paul Stirling will step into the role on an interim basis.
Balbirnie, 32, has led his country 89 times across formats (four Tests, 33 ODIs, 52 T20Is) since taking over the reins in late 2019.
He informed his teammates shortly after today’s final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier for Ireland – signing off his white-ball captaincy tenure with a win.

GROS ISLET- The West Indies Women took the three-match CG United One Day International series 2-0, defeating Ireland by 6 wickets in the final match at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in St. Lucia.
Winning the toss and batting first, posted 203 all out in 50 overs. The star of the Irish innings was Gaby Lewis, who got stranded on 95 not out of 121 deliveries, she shared a 50-run partnership with Cara Murray which was crucial in steadying the ship after Ireland lost quick wickets. Afy Fletcher 10-0-37-3 and Shamilia Connell 4-0-16-2 kept the Irish batters in check.
In response, the West Indies Women started their innings shakily, losing a few early wickets. However, it was Stafanie Taylor who once again rescued her side. Taylor notched her 40th ODI half-century, she showcased her experience and composure in a challenging situation, constructing her innings carefully.
Taylor found a reliable partner in Chinelle Henry, who carried on her good form from the first ODI, hitting her second consecutive half-century. Together, they put on a match-winning 104-run partnership, steering their team to a comfortable 6-wicket victory with 8.4 overs to spare.
Full scorecard here
This was captain Hayley Matthews first series win and she told CWI Media, “I’m happy that we were able to get over the line in a series that we were looking to dominate. We earned valuable ICC Women’s Championship points, Stafanie is back in form and Chinelle is coming into her own along with debuts from our youngsters, I’d say those are some serious positives we can take away from this series. We all knew the potential Chinelle has and what we have been expecting from her, it’s great to see her scoring runs and I know there’s more to come.”
The Player of the Match was awarded to Stafanie Taylor for her outstanding knock of 79 not out under pressure, while the Player of the Series was given to Hayley Matthews for her all-round performance.
The two teams will now switch to the shorter format when the three-match T20 International series starts on Tuesday at the same venue. All matches will start at 5pm Eastern Caribbean time (4pm Jamaica time).
Match tickets are available online from the Windies Tickets service, presented by Mastercard - Tickets.windiescricket.com - at a discounted price of US$6/EC$16 (USS3/EC$7.50 children and seniors) with tickets available on the day at the box office at a price of US$7.50/EC$20 (US$3.75/EC$10 for children and seniors).
For fans unable to get to the games in St. Lucia, the CG United ODI Series will be exclusively live on Flow Sports in the Caribbean and on BT Sport in the UK & Ireland. The matches will also be shown around the world on FanCode (India), ESPN+ (USA), Sky NZ (NZ), SuperSport (sub-Saharan Africa) and in all other countries on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel.
Match Schedule
(All matches played at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, St. Lucia)
CG United ODI Series:
Monday 26 June: 1st CG United ODI – 10am (9amJamaica Time)- West Indies won by 58 runs
Wednesday 28 June: 2nd CG United ODI – 10am(9am Jamaica Time)- Match abandoned due to rain
Saturday 1 July: 3rd CG United ODI – 3pm (2pmJamaica Time)- West Indies won by 6 wickets
T20 International Series:
All matches start at 5pm Eastern Caribbean Time (4pm Jamaica Time)
Tuesday 4 July: 1st T20I
Thursday 6 July: 2nd T20I
Saturday 8 July: 3rd T20I

IRELAND WIN AGAIN

Three wickets from returning paceman Craig Young, and a belligerent half-century from opener Paul Stirling, helped Ireland Men to a six-wicket win over USA in their seventh-place playoff semi-final at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers.
During what was the first-ever One-Day International (ODI) between the sides, an opening partnership of 84 off 83 balls set the tone for Ireland’s run chase after being set 197 for victory. Stirling was the main aggressor, with nine fours and two sixes being the dominant scoring shots in his 45-ball 58. He brought up his 28th career ODI fifty in the eleventh over, with a reverse sweep for a boundary.
Fortune was a little bit on his side throughout, dropped on seven, and lucky again on 27, he nevertheless backed up his last knock of 162 against the UAE with another assertive innings. Most of his boundaries came through the off side – punching cover drives or flashing cut strokes behind point, but his two sixes were stand-and-deliver pull shots over the legside boundary. Stirling eventually fell on 58 when he was trapped lbw trying to sweep in the 14th over, with Ireland 84-1.
Captain Andrew Balbirnie – playing in his 100th ODI - came in at number three and posted a 39-run partnership with Andy McBrine before the left-hander was caught and bowled by Nosthush Kenjige with Ireland 123-2.
Harry Tector and Lorcan Tucker both made 25, before Balbirnie and Curtis Campher guided the side home with over 15 overs to spare. Balbirnie ended on 45* - after his 66 in the last match – has seen the skipper register not only much-needed runs, butt also valuable time in the middle.
Earlier in the day the USA saw Saiteja Mukkamalla and Sushant Modani score half-centuries as they posted 196 all out. Opener Steven Taylor played with plenty of freedom early on, before a seventh over double-wicket maiden from Craig Young – in his first over of the tournament - took care of both Taylor and US captain Monank Patel.
Mukkamalla and Modani then combined for an 88-run partnership before Mukkamalla was unfortunate to get run out in the 23rd over - McBrine getting his index finger to a shot from Modani that clipped the stumps, with Mukkamalla caught out of his crease.
Having been 121-3, Ireland’s bowlers ran through the lower order with Barry McCarthy, Young, McBrine, and Mark Adair all taking wickets, with Young the best of those with 3-35 from his seven overs.
Ireland will now face the winners of Nepal v UAE in the seventh-place playoff final next Tuesday, 4 July.
MATCH SUMMARY
Ireland Men v USA Men, ICC World Cup Qualifier, 7th place playoff semi-final, Harare, 30 June 2023
USA 196 (42.4 overs; S Mukkamalla 55, S Modani 55; C Young 3-35)
Ireland 197-4 (34.2 overs; P Stirling 58, A Balbirnie 45*; N Kenjige 2-41)
Ireland won by 6 wickets

Ireland will now move on to Harare to play the USA on Friday in the seventh-place playoff semi-final.

ICC World Cup Qualifying
Result-
Ireland 349-4 (50 overs): Stirling 162, Balbirnie 66, Tector 57; Sharma 3-46
United Arab Emirates 211 all out (39 overs): Muhammad 45, Sharma 44; Campher 2-14, Little 2-30, Dockrell 2-32, McBrine 2-34
Ireland won by 138 runs

A welcome return to form for most of the players after some horrid performances in recent games. Yes, Ireland never achieved their target in Zimbabwe, but don't dwell too much in the past as there were some positives, in particular, captain Andrew Bilbirnie after a series of poor scores. Balbirnie, Tector and Paul Stirling were the batting stars. Stirling led from the front, as usual, but we often wonder how could he score more if he was less impetuous. Of course, that's his style which has placed him as one of the greatest attacking opener in the world in the short game. There are not many Ireland players in that category!
Ironically, if Ireland had beaten Oman they would have reached the next level. However, that's now history.
Ireland has a busy season, but we hope they learn from their mistakes. Nobody should be excluded from the review and includes team selection, captaincy, coaches, selectors and the hierarchy. Let's be honest, they should and could, have achieved more in the past few weeks.
The impetus of Ireland's achievements over the past few decades has been dented. Associate members are rising and Ireland need to react. West Indies cricket lost the plot 30 years ago and have struggled thereafter. There are plenty of warning signs!

Hi folks glendermott cc Londonderry are looking to bring there u11s & u13s to play a friendly on fri 28th July as a warm up for our world cup in the nwcu ...We are willing to travel & would be grateful if any club could facilitie us ....

Yours in sport
Fred Simpson
Glendermott cricket club

ST LUCIA – A gutsy display by Ireland Women in the first one-day international (ODI) against West Indies may ultimately have ended in defeat, but not before the Girls in Green showed their hosts that they were up for the contest on this six-match tour.
Cara Murray (3-60) provided impetus to an Irish fightback with the ball, while a magnificent 83 to opener Gaby Lewis – supported by skipper Laura Delany (40) and Orla Prendergast (37) - had Ireland Women keeping the required run rate manageable at the halfway stage of the run chase.
After losing the toss and being asked to bowl first, Ava Canning – on ODI debut – looked dangerous early with her renowned swing,
however, it was Sophie MacMahon who made the first breakthrough with an inswinger that bamboozled Zaida James (13) and trapped the left-hander in front.
At 36-1 in the 10th over, the Irish sensed early nervousness in their opponents – but that hope was soon crushed by a dominant 156-run second-wicket partnership between West Indies captain Hayley Matthews (109) and Stefanie Taylor (55). The runs came from just 153 balls as the two experienced batters hit to all parts of the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground
Murray’s first wicket led to a mini top-order collapse, the West Indies losing 3-6 in 15 balls, but a counter-attacking 53* from 37 balls by Chinelle Henry saw the Caribbean side post 297-6 from their 50 overs.
In the reply, Lewis and Leah Paul (10) combined for a 34-run opening stand until a mix-up saw Paul caught well short of her ground. Lewis was joined by Prendergast and the pair first consolidated, and then began to build a platform for Ireland to launch their charge in the last 25 overs. Prendergast was looking to increase the run rate, but holed out at deep mid-wicket – the second-wicket partnership of 67 was important, yet the next stand of 71 between Lewis and Delany put Ireland on a credible path towards an unlikely victory.
The third-wicket stand took 83 balls, but became increasingly dangerous to the home side due mainly to the ease by which the Irish pair compiled their runs. Lewis, eyeing up her first ODI century, was caught sweeping which precipitated a middle-order collapse of 5-30.
A busy 20 to Mary Waldron and a late 13 to Sophie MacMahon pushed the Irish total to 239 – but in a moral victory for the visitors, the final pair of Murray and Canning held out for 19 balls to ensure Ireland batted out their 50 overs.
The two sides meet again on Wednesday at the same venue for the second of three ODIs.
MATCH SUMMARY
West Indies Women v Ireland Women, 1st ODI, St Lucia, 26 June 2023
West Indies 297-6 (50 overs: H Matthews 109; C Murray 3-60)
Ireland 239-9 (50 overs; G Lewis 83; H Matthews 3-53)
West Indies won by 58 runs

Sri Lanka beat Ireland

A century from Dimuth Karaunaratne, and a half-century from Sadeera Samarawickrama saw Sri Lanka effectively end Ireland Men’s dreams of involvement at the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Mark Adair – who took his 50th career ODI wicket when he caught and bowled Lahiru Kamara – Barry McCarthy and Gareth Delany all bowled well as Ireland bounced back well after a slow start.
Having lost their opening two matches, to Oman and Scotland, Ireland headed into this game needing a win to keep their slim hopes of reaching the Super Six stage of the competition alive, and having won the toss, Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie sent Sri Lanka in to bat.
From the outset Sri Lanka looked dominant as they raced away to 31-0 after the first three overs. Ireland responded with back-to-back maidens from Adair and McCarthy, before the latter - playing in his first ODI since 2021 - removed both Prathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis with successive deliveries in the ninth over, Sri Lanka was then 48-2.
Karaunaratne and Samarawickrama both settled in and comfortably reached their half-centuries - Karunaratne his fifth consecutive ODI fifty in the 21st over and Samarawickrama followed up with his third ODI fifty two overs later. The pair went on to score 168 for the third wicket as Ireland couldn’t find a breakthrough with the two set batters.
The partnership was final broken when Delany removed Samarawickrama for 82, as Harry Tector grabbed the ball high in the air with the first ball of the 36th over, with Sri Lanka 216-3. Karunaratne went on to score his maiden ODI century in the 37th over with a single down to third.
Late on, Ireland’s bowlers hit back, taking 7-109 in the final 15 overs as Sri Lanka posted 325 all out.
In reply, Ireland’s response suffered from the loss of regular wickets, despite keeping up with the required run rate required.
A wonderful one-handed catch by wicket-keeper Mendis saw Paul Stirling dismissed early on, and Ireland found themselves two down in the seventh over when Andy McBrine scooped one to Kusal Rajitha in the deep. Despite the loss of those early wickets Ireland were 53-2 after 9 overs – the exact same score as Sri Lanka were at the same stage of their innings.
Andrew Balbirine (12) was trapped lbw, while Lorcan Tucker went for a duck as Ireland were 58-4 and searching for a partnership.
However, a noteworthy partnership never materialised, as Wanindu Hasaranga put on a spinners masterclass for the Sri Lankans, including taking the wicket of Tector when he was looking comfortable.
Curtis Campher continued where he left off against Scotland, hammering the ball all over the ground – scoring 39 runs – before he top-edged one to Mendis in the 20th over with Ireland 116-6 after 20 overs, with Ireland‘s world cup dreams seemingly dashed.
Quick-fire knocks from Delany and Little kept the scoreboard ticking over. Little hit a massive six off Hasaranga, but the Sri Lankan spinner got his revenge with the very next ball, as he caught and bowled Little to claim his five-wicket haul, as Ireland were bowled out for 192 with 19 overs remaining.
Ireland will play their final qualifier against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday, 27 June at 8am Ireland time.
MATCH SUMMARY
Ireland Men v Sri Lanka Men, ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, Queen’s Sports Club, Bulawayo, 25 June 2023
Sri Lanka 325 (49.5 overs; D Karunaratne 103, S Samarawickrama 82; M Adair 4-46)
Ireland 192 (31 overs; C Campher 39, H Tector 33; W Hasaranga 5-79)
Sri Lanka won by 133 runs

Ireland lose in final ball to Scotland
A gutsy maiden ODI century by Curtis Campher wasn’t enough as Ireland Men fell to a last-ball, one-wicket loss to Scotland at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier today.
Looking odds-on to win with ease with 10 overs left in the run-chase, Ireland’s bowlers couldn’t rein in the batting of the lower-order pair of Michael Leask (91*) and Mark Watt (47) who put on 82 for the 8th wicket. While Watt fell, Leask shepherded through the tailenders and saw Scotland through to a one-wicket, last-ball win.
Earlier in the day, Ireland’s top order failed to fire and it fell to a Curtis Campher-George Dockrell partnership to save the Irish innings and post a competitive score. Their 136-run stand came from 150 balls and rescued their side from a precarious position of 70-5 in the 19th over.
Campher started watchfully as he entered the fray with his side languishing at 33-4. He built a steadying partnership of 37 with Andy McBrine (32) before Dockrell joined him at the crease. Dockrell looked the more aggressive of the two, however, Campher was busy, working the ball and running hard – routinely turning ones into twos, and putting pressure on the fielders.
After Campher and Dockrell both brought up their half-centuries they began to up the run rate. Campher began to regularly find the boundary – and struck four maximums over the boundary – as he accelerated through the gears. His pull shot for six, followed by consecutive boundaries off Safyaan Sharif in the 43rd over signalled his intent to finish with a flourish. His first 50 runs took 68 balls, but his second 50 only took 31 balls, bringing up his first ODI century with a boundary behind square.
The loss of Dockrell for 69 did not see the run rate abate – Campher and Gareth Delany (19) combining for a quickfire 50-run partnership in just over four overs. Campher finally fell for 120 from the penultimate ball of the innings, Josh Little powered the last ball for four down the ground, and Ireland went into the break with a highly competitive 286-8.
Ireland started well with the ball, Adair removing Matthew Cross (4) in the second over. Adair soon had two wickets before Campher, never far from the action in this match, made two incisive interventions – first he trapped Chris McBride (56) in front then took a deflected catch at short third man. Four wickets fell for 32 runs, reducing Scotland to 122-6 in the 28th over.
When Watt strode to the crease Scotland was 152-7, needing 135 runs in 16 overs – in the end it came down to the last ball with Leask under-edging a boundary past wicketkeeper Lorcan Tucker’s outstretched left hand.
Ireland now has three days break until they face Sri Lanka on Sunday. While Ireland still maintains a chance of qualification, they will require favourable results elsewhere to achieve their goal.

MATCH SUMMARY
Ireland 286-8 (50 overs: C Campher 120, G Dockrell 69; B McMullen 5-34)
Scotland 289-9 (50 overs; M Leask, C McBride 56; M Adair 3-57)

Scotland won by 1 wicket