England skipper pats Ireland for sensational victory
March 3rd, 2011 - 2:35 am ICT by IANSBangalore, March 3 (IANS) A distraught English skipper Andrew Strauss late Wednesday was gracious to acknowledge that minnows Ireland fully deserved victory in their Group B encounter in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 at the Chinnaswamy stadium here.
“Though I am shocked and bitterly disappointed over the defeat, Ireland fully deserved the victory for way they fought against us and chased the big score (327) with an extraordinary batting by Kevin O’Brien, who snatched the game away from us,” Strauss told reporters after Ireland beat favourites England by three wickets in 49.1 overs.
Vowing to bounce back in the remaining three league matches (against South Africa, West Indies and Bangladesh) over the next three weeks for a berth in the quarter finals, Strauss said they were very much in the game till the 25th over when the never-say-die Irish were five down for a paltry 111.
“Our World Cup dream is not over yet, as we had done a reasonable job with the bat and ball initially. Things looked comfortable till O’Brien and (Alexander) Cusack dug in and built a strong partnership (162 runs) for the sixth wicket and turned the tables against us,” a beleaguered Strauss recalled.
Admitting that shoddy bowling and fielding during the second half with three-four dropped catches cost them the game dearly, the English captain said the opponents made smart use of the power plays and came back into the game in a dramatic fashion.
“I’m still at a loss to explain it (dropping catches), we’re doing exactly the same fielding drills and I still think we’re an excellent fielding side. But full credit to Kevin who was pretty brutal and hit some great shots during the power play,” Strauss added.
– Indo-Asian News Service
fb/kv
- World Cup stunner: Ireland score upset win over England (Third Lead) - Mar 03, 2011
- Yuvraj takes five, Ireland all out for 207 (Lead) - Mar 06, 2011
- Ireland put India on notice with victory over England - Mar 03, 2011
- England elect to bat against Ireland - Mar 02, 2011
- Kevin's blazing century inspires historic Irish win (Intro Roundup) - Mar 03, 2011
- Irishman Kevin's fastest 2011 World Cup century shocks England (Roundup) - Mar 03, 2011
- Yuvraj stars with bat and ball to take India home (Roundup) - Mar 07, 2011
- West Indies will be wary of fast-improving Ireland (Preview) - Mar 10, 2011
- England left looking like a pub side against Ireland: Brit press - Mar 03, 2011
- We will have to be at our best against India: Ireland coach - Mar 04, 2011
- Fastest WC century maker eyes IPL, says he used to play like that in garden - Mar 03, 2011
- An Irish buzz on the eve of their match against India (Preview) - Mar 05, 2011
- O'Brien wary of strong Indian batting, bowling line-up - Mar 04, 2011
- India elect to field against Ireland - Mar 06, 2011
- West Indies overpower Ireland to stay in the hunt (Roundup) - Mar 11, 2011
Tags: andrew strauss, asian news, bat and ball, berth, cricket world cup, cricket world cup 2011, dramatic fashion, england skipper, english captain, icc cricket world, icc cricket world cup, icc cricket world cup 2011, minnows, o brien, power play, power plays, quarter finals, wicket, wickets, world cup dream