Ireland Andrew Balbirnie, Barry McCarthy and Harry Tector celebrate the victory over Pakistan in the opening T20 international at Castle Avenue at Castle Avenue in Clontarf. Photograph: Seb Daly/SportsfileNext month’s T20 World Cup schedule leaves open the possibility of Ireland and Pakistan squaring off in the final group game in Florida with a place in the competition’s next stage on the line.
Be it the lack of quality domestic fixtures or, at this stage, pure superstition, Ireland have historically been poor at the start of a campaign. Add to that a mixed at best record of beating higher-ranked nations at home and Friday’s series-opening win looks all the more important.Galway and Louth go in search of some Olympic spirit
Balbirnie hit 10 boundaries and two maximums in his knock, good for a strike-rate of 140 as his favoured sweep shot off the spinners proved to be a strong weapon. Despite the quality of his innings, he did not get Ireland over the line after being bowled in the penultimate over by a Shaheen Afridi full toss. Ireland still required 16 runs with their top scorer now back in the sheds.
The victory could well be a bigger boost than normal given the build-up to the game was dominated by news of a contractual stand-off. Last week, the Irish male players rejected Cricket Ireland’s central contract offers as they continue to look for pay rises. Since March, they have been playing on last year’s terms which have rolled over indefinitely after their expiration.
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