On this day in 2007, Ireland shocked the Cricket world by beating Pakistan in their maiden appearance in the ODI World Cup. In a low scoring thriller, Ireland overcame the 1992 Champions by 3 wickets. Niall O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, Andre Botha, and Kevin O’Brien played key roles in Ireland’s big win. The loss proved costly for Pakistan, as they were knocked out of the tournament from the Group Stage.
Ireland won the toss and elected to bowl first. Their bowlers were right on the money from the word go and pulled off a good performance. Pakistani batters never seemed to be in the game, as wickets kept on falling on a consistent basis. The batters went into a shell and did not attempt to up the ante. Ireland bowlers bowled according to their plans and executed them well.
Pakistan’s highest run-scorer in the match was Kamral Akmal with his 27(47). Extras contributed for 29 runs, which was crucial in Pakistan crossing the 100-run mark. Pakistan was dismissed for 132 runs in their 45.4 overs. Boyd Rankin was the pick of the bowlers, who claimed 3/32 in his spell of 9 overs. Andre Botha and Kyle McCallan claimed a couple of wickets each.
Ireland did not have a great start either, as they lost two early wickets. But the partnership between William Porterfield and Niall O’Brien was key for the underdogs. Niall was the star performer as he scored an impressive 72(107). Even with the gloves, he did a fine job by claiming two catches. There was a small collapse after the loss of Niall and Porterfield’s wickets.
From 108/4 at one stage, Ireland was reduced to 113/7. But skipper Trent Johnston and the ever reliable Kevin O’Brien took them home with a timely partnership of 20 runs for the 8th wicket. For Pakistan, Mohammad Sami and Iftikhar Anjum claimed 3 and 2 wickets respectively. Unfortunately, their batting unit let them down, which became the reason for their early exit from the ODI World Cup 2007.
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