England’s Titanic Hitters Cruise Past Ireland In First T20 At Malahide

England continued their brutal form in T20 internationals after they beat Ireland on Wednesday in the first of a three-match series. A trip across the Irish sea was a gentle introduction for stand-in captain Jacob Bethell as his side completed a comprehensive four-wicket win over the Green and Whites within the attractive environment of Malahide Castle and Gardens.

England have now scored over 500 runs in the last two T20s. They mauled South Africa at Manchester last Tuesday, recording the highest score by a Full Member nation in the format. Phil Salt, who belted 141 at Old Trafford, fell 11 runs short of another century in his quest to be the best T20 batter in the world. Salt swiped his bat against his pad in anger as he walked off, but he has smashed a combined 12 sixes and 25 fours in those knocks.

Ireland had batted well, scoring 25 boundaries after a relatively subdued powerplay. Lorcan Tucker averages over 40 in Test cricket, and his multi-format skills had a breezy outing here. The wicketkeeper hit a splendid 55 as he put on a stand of 123 with Harry Tector, who made 63.

The only black mark against England was the bowling effort. Adil Rashid suffered more than usual in the truncated series against the Proteas, and he chucked in some ropey deliveries in North Dublin too. Jamie Overton has taken himself out of red-ball selection, but he was wayward in length. Sam Curran, England’s bits and pieces specialist, didn’t have his best day with his bowling all sorts.

Having just scored 300, England weren’t going to sweat over chasing 197 on a small ground against an attack stripped of Mark Adair and Josh Little. Graham Hume was plundered for 22 off his opening over, and Barry McCarthy went for 19 as Jos Buttler and Salt picked up where they left off. Their range was straight down the ground, over cover, towards long-on, midwicket and down to third man. The only thing missing was the ramp.

Everything was in their wheelhouse until Buttler holed out off a clever Tector slower ball. By then, the Three Lions were 74 for 1 in the fifth over. That meant the finishing line was a cruise into port.

Bethell became the youngest ever England skipper at 21. It was quite the coronation, given that the Somerset man has hardly played any top-level cricket during the summer. However, the McCullum and Stokes selection wagon prefers fast wheels rather than those boring job specs, such as age and experience. Bethell enjoyed a cameo 24, including a sequence of 4-4-6 and out. All England’s batters went down swinging. It’s the way they play.

Ireland didn’t disgrace themselves, but using four bowlers in the first four overs said everything about where their problems lay. It was the first-ever T20 game hosted against their nearest neighbor. Given that it costs approximately Cricket Ireland one million Euros to stage a Test, the focus is on developing white-ball cricket as they are set to co-host the 2030 World Cup. A year ago, the Irish government approved a national stadium which will accommodate 4,000 spectators and can absorb temporary seating.

Ireland simply doesn’t play enough at home to be truly competitive as the cost of permanent infrastructure is beyond its budget. The new ICC funding cycle from 2024-27 should provide CI with around $70 million from member distributions. The stadium build will take the pressure off.

Opening up Malahide has big cost implications – in the hundreds of thousands – but at least the game went ahead. Ireland lost three fixtures against the West Indies due to weather this summer, a tour by Afghanistan was cancelled, and a visit by Australia for last August was also struck off because of financial reasons.

England’s travails in the 50-over format since their dismal exit from the 2023 World Cup are well-documented, but at least they still hold a top-three ranking in the T20 format, sitting below India and Australia. Buttler had rediscovered his zing in recent innings, while Salt’s brutal approach suits the shorter white-ball format. England didn’t even have to bring their mainstream batting unit of new white-ball skipper Harry Brook, Ben Duckett and Jamie Smith.

The second and third matches are due to be played on Friday and Sunday, but the luck of the Irish may desert them with those grey skies in Dublin. Cricket in September isn’t always a cash cow.