Ireland won the inaugural Twenty20 international in Dublin on Friday, defeating Pakistan by five wickets thanks in large part to Andrew Balbirnie’s 77. This was Ireland’s first victory against Pakistan in 17 years.
Ireland’s victory handed them a 1-0 lead in the three-match series against Pakistan, a team they will also play in the United States and the West Indies in the group stage of the T20 World Cup next month.
Ireland have only defeated Pakistan twice before, the first being their unexpected victory in the 2007 50-over World Cup. On Friday, the tourists’ leading scorer, Pakistani batsman and captain Babar Azam, amassed 57 points out of a total of 182-6, which also included 45 from Saim Ayub.
“I missed the last over on TV. At the presenting ceremony, Balbirnie, who had a third-wicket partnership of 77 with Harry Tector, remarked, “went to the tent and put a towel over my head.”
“I thought my responsibility was to push the squad over the edge… Harry stated that we could score runs if we could bat consistently through the thirteenth over. It was established by that cooperation.”
Meanwhile, Azam cleared his bowlers of any responsibility for the loss.
“I think 190 would have been a par score,” he stated.
“Both hitting and fielding were losses for us. don’t believe we carried out the plans. We had very few fielding errors.
“We attacked in the first six overs but didn’t finish well.”
Abbas Afridi bowled George Dockrell for 24 runs in the final four overs, giving Ireland the forty they needed to win. In the subsequent over, Shadab Khan provided Balbirnie with a respite when he failed to hold a difficult chance, leaving Ireland needing another 28 from 17 balls.
When the seventh round ended, Ireland’s goal had dropped to 19.
However, the opener’s remarkable 55-ball innings, which included 10 fours and two sixes, came to an end when Pakistani fast Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled Balbirnie with a low full toss.
Curtis Campher under-edged a boundary off Abbas with Ireland needing 11 from the last over, and he finally clinched the match with a leg bye.
The teams rematch on Sunday and Tuesday in Dublin.
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