a pull shot.
At the end of that over, the 19th, Ireland needed just 46 more runs to win but Mitchell Starc, the world’s number one ranked ODI bowler, and Cummins were just too good for the Ireland lower-order.
Smith surprised most observers by choosing to bat first.
“It’s another ODI and we wanted to win this game and batting first, posting a good total and then putting them under pressure was the best way,” said Smith.
“It looked like it was going to be a slow wicket but I wanted us to get a good hit. It was nice for a few guys to spend time in the middle and I think we got everything we wanted out of this game.”
Smith added: “Ed Joyce and Niall O’Brien got a partnership going but I always thought we were just one wicket away from cracking it open and it turned out to be that way.”
Ireland captain William Porterfield was happy with his side’s performance, particularly in taking six wickets for 75 runs after Australia’s impressive opening stand, but admitted the world champions’ quality was evident at the finish.
“I thought we played quite well and came back strongly in both innings,” Porterfield said.
“It is one of the harder periods in 50-over cricket to take wickets, through the middle period, so that was really pleasing against such quality opposition and then to come back from losing two early wickets, Ed and Niall set us up for a big finish.
“But their class showed in the end.”
Ireland, in their latest example of giant-killing, beat the West Indies at the World Cup only to be denied a place in the quarter-finals by the Test side on net run-rate.
Porterfield said the only way for Ireland to record similar wins was to play the top teams more often.
“We have only played two one-dayers since the World Cup and we have only three more planned before the start of next season,” he explained.
“That is frustrating because the more fixtures we start getting, we will start winning. It becomes easier the more regularly you play.”