Skipper Lorcan Tucker’s blistering 51-ball 94 was complemented by a disciplined bowling effort as Ireland powered to a massive 96-run win over Oman in a lop-sided Group B T20 World Cup match on Saturday
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COLOMBO — Skipper Lorcan Tucker’s blistering 51-ball 94 was complemented by a disciplined bowling effort as Ireland powered to a massive 96-run win over Oman in a lop-sided Group B T20 World Cup match here on Saturday.
Sent in to bat, Tucker launched a ferocious counterattack, smashing 10 fours and four sixes in a sensational knock as Ireland recovered from 47 for 3 to 235 for five, the highest total of this edition of the T20 World Cup.
Chasing the massive total, Aamir Kaleem (50) and Hammad Mirza (46) gave Oman hope but once they departed, it all went downhill as they were bowled out for 139 in 18 overs.
As many as eight batters scored in single digits.
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Josh Little was the most successful bowler as he snared three for 16 in his quota of four overs. He was ably supported by Matthew Humphreys (2/27), Barry McCarthy (2/32) and George Dockrell (1/6).
Despite the win, Ireland stayed at the fourth spot with Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Australia occupying the top three. Oman succumbed to their third loss.
Earlier, opting to bowl, Oman unleashed spin from the outset, with five of the six Powerplay overs bowled by spinners. The move paid early dividends as left-arm spinner Shakeel Ahmed ripped through the top order with a three-wicket burst.
Shakeel removed Tim Tector in the opening over before dismissing Ross Adair, who had briefly counterattacked with three fours off Shah Faisal. In the fifth over, Harry Tector also fell to Shakeel as Ireland stumbled.
Veteran Aamir Kaleem, the oldest player in the competition at 44, then tightened the screws further by dismissing Curtis Campher.
However, the momentum shifted dramatically once Tucker found his rhythm.
Tucker stitched together a 101-run stand off 56 balls with Gareth Delany (56) to wrest back the control. He then added another 70 runs off just 19 deliveries with George Dockrell (35), whose nine-ball cameo included five towering sixes.
The assault was relentless. Eighty-six runs came off the final four overs as Oman’s bowlers wilted under sustained pressure.
Tucker, who survived a stumping chance earlier in his innings, brought up his half-century off 35 balls with a boundary off Kaleem. Delany matched the aggression, smashing back-to-back sixes off Jiten Ramanandi in a 15th over that yielded 18 runs. He reached his fifty off 28 balls before falling to Shah Faisal in the 17th over.
Tucker continued the carnage, plundering three sixes and two fours off Mohammad Nadeem in a 26-run over. The penultimate over yielded 21 runs, with Dockrell joining the onslaught by clearing the ropes twice.
Dockrell then finished in style, hammering the final three deliveries for sixes as Ireland piled up the highest total of this edition of the tournament.
Player of the Match Tucker said after the game that he had to work hard against the spinners early on before he could settle in and convert his start into a substantial score.
"Felt like we had a mixed-bag, hit a lot of boundaries but lost a lot of wickets. A little bit tougher than batting at the start. Had to put in a lot of work on batting against spin. It was about keeping my tempo and capitalising on bad balls for boundaries," said Tucker.
He added that the emphatic margin of victory had provided a significant boost to the team's Net Run Rate, something that could prove crucial later on.
"One of our best days. Turned up and played some positive cricket. Got a boost to our net run rate as well," he added.