Remembering Ireland cricket team's greatest World Cup wins
Ireland has been one associate nation that has regularly impressed cricket fans with their heroics, especially in the big tournaments like the World Cup. They have been the unofficial party poopers of the World Cup now for a long time, giving unexpected jolts to the heavyweights and often derailing their campaigns.
Let us have a look at the biggest upsets they have created in their short ODI history.
First major scalp: Knocking out Pakistan from the 2007 World Cup
2007 World Cup was a disaster for both the Asian powerhouses in India and Pakistan. While India’s campaign was derailed by a loss to Bangladesh, for Pakistan, it was Ireland who turned out to be the ones to spoil the party.
Pakistan were bundled out for a paltry score of 132, batting first. Not a single Pakistan batsman reached 30. What made it even more impressive on Ireland’s part was that Pakistan had a great batting line-up, boosted by the likes of Inzamam-ul-Haq, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf.
Ireland too kept losing wickets regularly and were in a grave situation with the score at 113 for 7. However, Kevin O’Brien and Trent Johnson took them to the target without any further damage, registering Ireland’s first big win over an established side.
It was Ireland’s first big win over an established side.
Shocking their big brothers in the 2011 World Cup
Ireland beating England would be a more common phenomenon in the sport of Rugby, playing at Lansdowne Road, the home of Irish rugby. However, the thought of them beating England in cricket, in the heart of Bangalore that too, was something not many people would have bet upon.
However, on the 11th of March 2011, Ireland did the unthinkable, beating three-time finalists England in a World Cup encounter at Bangalore.
England batted first and scored a mammoth 327 for 8, helped by good contributions from Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell and Kevin Petersen.
At the halfway mark of their innings, Ireland were 111 for 5, their hopes of even coming close pretty bleak at that stage of the match. It was all over for all practical purposes.
But as many in the sport like to say, ‘It ain’t over until the fat lady sings’.
In came Kevin O’Brien, a burly middle order batsman, who had some different plans. He struck a brilliant 113 from only 63 balls, breaking Matthew Hayden’s record for the fastest century in a World Cup on the way. He scored his 100 in only 50 balls and comfortably cleared the rope six times.
On that day, he looked like a cross between Keiron Pollard and Mahela Jayawardena, combining the former’s power with the later’s finesse.
When O’Brien got himself run-out, Ireland only needed 11 runs of 11 balls, which they achieved easily. Afterwards, O’Brien commented: “"It's the best I've ever played. Everything just came off. I had a bit of luck and just kept going."
It was the best day in Ireland’s cricket history.
Beating West Indies in the 2015 edition
Ireland produced a stunning display of aggressive cricket against a strong West Indies team, as they chased down a mammoth total of 304 to register their third big win over an established side in their World Cup history.
West Indies, batting first, did not have a great start. They lost their first five wickets for a mere 87, after which Lendl Simmons and Darren Sammy launched a counter attack to take their team to a commanding total of 304.
While chasing, Ireland kept the lid on the required run rate from the very beginning, scoring at more than 6 runs an over consistently. They never looked under pressure or hurried while chasing this big score, and finally got there with 25 balls to spare.
It was a big statement of confidence from the minnows, who after the victory claimed that they did not see this as an upset.