Ireland captain Andy Balbirnie is confident his side can build on their win over England and pull off a shock performance in the T20 World Cup semi-finals.
The Balbirnie side lost to Sri Lanka in their Super 12 opener, thrashed England in a rain-soaked match on Wednesday and could not know much more success when they dropped their match against Afghanistan without a game on Friday.
Both teams were forced to settle for a point apiece after persistent rain on an already saturated pitch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground left Ireland on three points with two rounds of group matches remaining.
Ireland will face tournament hosts and defending champions Australia at the Gabba on Monday ahead of the group final against New Zealand in Adelaide on November 4, with wins against both teams needed to reach the semi-finals first. Time.
“We definitely believe we can (qualify),” Balbirni said. “Our result (against England) on Wednesday confirms this belief. We didn’t play our best cricket and we managed to beat a team as good as England, so that was a positive.
“I definitely don’t want to be in a group (where Ireland can reach the semis) which I don’t think will be a bad atmosphere.
“Back-to-back world champions is something quite special. They will be expected to beat us, no doubt. This is a good way to get into the game and you can play with some freedom.
Monday, October 31 at 7:30 am
“We definitely believe we can beat them and we know we will be very good on the day. I know the group is very excited about this challenge.
Ireland – the second-lowest-ranked T20 team remaining in the competition – have not beaten the trans-Tasman side in any format, although they dismissed the fact that their side had “nothing to lose” against the two before the tournament. favorites
“The pressure we have at this point, if we lose a lot, a lot of people will say we don’t deserve to be here, that’s a different kind of pressure,” Balbirni added.
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Sky Sports’ Michael Atherton looks back at a famous Ireland win and how England got the game out of hand
“We don’t like to use the term free kick because we want to go out and play, whether it’s the first or second round, we want to go out and play, we want to play a certain way.
“We have a lot to lose in this tournament. I can understand why people say that but, from our point of view, we feel equal when we step on the pitch and we have to perform that way too.
Watch Australia vs Ireland Monday live on Sky Sports Cricket. Assembly begins at 7:30am before departing the Gabba at 8am.
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