Ireland beat Scotland to clinch top spot in T20 tri-series

admin admin | 05-24 00:16

Andy Balbirnie and Lorcan Tucker hit fifties as Ireland recorded a five-wicket victory over Scotland to guarantee top spot in the tri-series ahead of the T20 World Cup.

After Ireland were set 158 for victory at The Hague, Balbirnie shared stands of 66 with fellow opener Paul Stirling (32) and 65 with Tucker to break the back of the chase.

While Balbirnie was dismissed for 56, one of three wickets to fall to seamer Chris Sole, and Tucker was run out for 55 when the scores were level in the final over, Gareth Delany clipped the next ball for a single to secure Ireland's win with three deliveries to spare.

Earlier, Craig Young and Mark Adair took three wickets apiece as Scotland were restricted to 157 for eight in their final tune-up before heading to the Caribbean for the T20 World Cup.

After Scotland slipped to 65 for four, Matthew Cross (35) and Michael Leask (34) got them up to a competitive score after Michael Jones had contributed a breezy 23 off 12 deliveries.

The tri-series finishes on Friday as Ireland face the Netherlands, who are unable to catch Stirling’s side but could leapfrog Scotland to claim second spot with victory at Sportpark Westvliet.

The top-12 teams in ICC's official world rankings by the end of the upcoming World Cup will likely qualify for 2026 and Ireland, currently 11th, have now opened up further daylight between themselves and both Scotland in 13th and Netherlands in 15th.

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.


ALSO READ

KSE-100 index closes at 81,459.29, up 997.95 points as investor optimism drives market

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a surge in investor optimism on Thursday, as the bench...

Gold prices in Pakistan reach new record of Rs268,500 per tola

Following a decline in the previous session, gold prices in Pakistan experienced a significant incre...

Number of clinical health staff increasing - Health NZ

Health officials have been marking the growth in the number of full-time clinical roles as evidence ...

Hazard mapping has 'chilling effect' on Nelson property market

Proposed hazard maps for Nelson are allegedly preventing properties across the city from being insur...

Woman called 'bad mum' after chasing down child stealer

A woman who stole an 18-month-old baby told the girl's mother she didn't deserve children when confr...

'Weak' case against diabetic driver thrown out by Australian court

A magistrate has criticised prosecutors as he threw out their "weak" case against a diabetic driver ...