Ireland down Scotland by 25 runs

HARARE: Ireland’s hopes of qualifying for the ICC World Cup 2019 were kept alive with their 25-run win against Scotland - their first victory in the Super Six stage of the ICC World Cup qualifiers.

Asked to bat first on Sunday (March 18), Ireland were in a spot of bother early after losing their openers to Bradley Wheal with just 45 on the board. However, a three-pronged resurrection act saw them get to a competitive total. Coming in at No.3, Andrew Balbirnie laid the bedrock for the innings with a patient 105 off 146 balls.

Giving him solid support first up was Niall O’Brien who contributed a run-a-ball 70 in the 138-run stand for the third wicket. By the time O’Brien departed, Ireland had enough on the board to launch a late attack. It was a situation tailor-made for Kevin O’Brien, who delivered exactly that with his 27-ball-46 - a knock studded with five fours and two sixes.

Through it all, Balbirnie stood firm and got to his second ODI ton and ensuring that the bowlers have enough to work with.For a brief while in the chase, Scotland were well ahead of the asking rate thanks to skipper Kyle Coetzer’s burst at the top. Taking a particular liking to Boyd Rankin, who was hit for six boundaries in his first two overs, Coetzer set up the chase with a brisk 61. But Rankin had the last laugh in this battle, getting Coetzer out in his second spell before knocking over George Munsey and Craig Wallace in successive overs. Rankin’s three-wicket burst derailed the chase as Scotland lost five wickets for 38 runs.

The chase picked up momentum later with contributions from the lower order, including a thrilling 38-run stand for the final wicket, which kept Scotland in the game for a short while. But Rankin managed to end that threatening stand with Scotland still adrift by 25 runs to keep Ireland in the race.

Brief Scores: Ireland 271/9 in 50 overs (Andrew Balbirnie 105, Niall O’Brien 70, Kevin O’Brien 46; Bradley Wheal 3/43) beat Scotland 246 in 47.4 overs (Kyle Coetzer 61, Richie Berrington 44; Boyd Rankin 4/63) by 25 runs.