Salt Guides the English Team to Historic T20 Win Over Ireland

Opening T20, Malahide

The hosts 196-3 (20 overs): Harry Tector 61* (36), Lorcan Tucker 55 (36)

England 197-6 (17.4 overs): Phil Salt 89 (46)

The English side triumphed by 4 wickets and lead the contest 1-0

The explosive opener once more shone for the English team as they defeated their opponents by 4 wickets in the first match of a three-match T20 series in Malahide.

The England opener hammered 89 off 46 balls but missed out of what would have been his second consecutive century when he was taken by an Irish fielder with the final delivery of the 15th over.

At that stage, Salt had done most of the back of the chase for his team, who completed the job of chasing the host's 196 for three with over 2 overs to spare.

Playing without their senior players, England were captained by Jacob Bethell for the initial time, with the youngster hitting twenty-four off sixteen balls before a soft shot to extra cover just as he seemed to be finding the gears.

In what was their initial fixture of any kind since a T20 victory over the Caribbean side on 15 June, the Irish team will have believed their tally, which included fifties for both Harry Tector and Lorcan Tucker, was a competitive one.

But just five days after their remarkable 304 for two against the Proteas on a historic night in Old Trafford, a much-changed England began their response in emphatic fashion before Ireland fought back for some consolation wickets.

This victory represented England's maiden victory over the Irish in the T20 format in what was their second full game, and the teams will face off again at the same venue on Friday and the final game.

On the day when the young captain became the most junior player to lead an England team, his initial decision as Harry Brook's stand-in skipper was to successfully call the toss and put the hosts in to bat first.

With all the build-up talk about the amount of cricket, or shortage, played by Ireland in the build-up to this contest, there will have been plenty of curiosity in how openers Paul Stirling and Ross Adair fared.

Although there were certainly a few moments when the pair appeared to be looking for their timing in the initial overs, they were 49 without loss at the end of the first six overs, with the skipper in particular providing some powerful strokes.

Among the captain's quartet maximums, a couple were hit onto the top of the hospitality tent at the compact ground in north Dublin.

Following the solid start, the batsmen were dismissed in quick succession with Ross Adair taken on the boundary by Salt in the eighth over when trying a shot over the on side off the bowling of Liam Dawson.

Nine balls and ten runs later, Paul Stirling was also out after swiping at the bowling of Adil Rashid with Will Jacks taking the grab.

Coming in of Harry Tector and then Lorcan Tucker to the crease saw the batting side run an increased number of ones for the rest of their batting effort but he still struck seven boundaries in his unbeaten sixty-one from thirty-six balls.

The batsman, who brought up his own fifty with a shot for six, nearly lasted to the end of the innings, only to edge the second-last delivery into the gloves of Jos Buttler.

Lacking the availability of Adair and Josh Little in their attack, it was the spin bowling of Matthew Humphreys who started the host bowling against Phil Salt in the English opener's first innings since reaching a hundred off just thirty-nine balls against the Proteas at Old Trafford last week.

The batting side quickly set about chasing down their goal of one hundred and ninety-seven.

After Barry McCarthy and Graham Hume could discover no answer for England's powerful batting, Craig Young slightly checked their rapid progress in the 4th over, before Humphreys' return saw the wicketkeeper sky one to Curtis Campher to be dismissed for twenty-eight off ten balls.

Despite the loss of their first wicket, the team still ended the first six overs on 84 for one with the opener's fifty coming off just 20 deliveries.

Salt would escape being dismissed off a Tector illegal delivery but kept to hit the host's bowlers to all corners of the ground.

The captain's exit came after striking a six over the temporary stand before Delany marked his hundredth Irish cap with the wicket of Rehan Ahmed.

Even after the bowler took the wickets of Sam Curran and Salt in the 15th over, the chasing side always looked likely for victory with Overton ultimately providing the winning runs with twenty deliveries to spare.