Amazing cricket : a historic night of 'underdog' Ireland

Ireland could not cross the group stage of the 2011 World Cup. But what's in it! They set the record for the most runs chased in the history of the tournament. Kevin O'Brien gave birth to a thrilling Irish fairy tale with an incredible 113 off 63 balls against England! On March 2, 2011, Ireland gave England their first upset of the tournament by beating England by three wickets in a suffocating match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. The ‘unequal’ battle of two old enemies in the neighborhood. In terms of strength, the difference between the two parties was huge. However, the match was not one-sided at all that day. The two teams gave the gift of a tense and exciting fight. The Irish, who lost the Test World Cup to Bangladesh and Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup and won the title of 'Giant Killer', showed that they have a good ability to win a match by chasing 328 runs against a superpower like England. But the first half of the match was not at all favorable for the Irish.

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England won the toss and elected to bat. The opening pair of two openers Strauss and Petersen came up with 91 runs. In the previous match against India, Strauss (34), who played career-best 157-run innings, broke the tie. Pietersen, who scored 59 off 50 balls off Sterling's off-spin, returned to England for 111 for two. Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell took charge of the innings buildup on a platform built by Andrew Strauss and Kevin Pietersen. Adding 18 runs in the third wicket partnership took England towards a big collection. However, John Mooney returned Trott and Bell with just 10 runs to spare. Trot (92) was deprived of a century for only 6 runs. Bell returned with an innings of 61 off 65 balls. After losing 4 wickets for 288 runs, the batsmen of England could not score as expected. Collingwood, Prior, Bresnan made only 39 runs in the last 35 balls! Notable among these was Collingwood's 18 off 11 balls. Even then, at the end of 50 overs, England's score reached 327 for 7.

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Muni was the best bowler for Ireland with four wickets for 63 runs. Seeing the huge target of 328 runs, it seemed that the match ended here. In the previous match, the target of 206 runs given by Bangladesh fell on the face of Ireland, such a big target to dream of winning the match to win the match at the level of adventure. But the words 'Every day is not Sunday' are not there. Cricket is called the game of glorious uncertainty because many things happen outside the conventional concept. This eternal proverb about cricket should not be forgotten. Courtesy of the Irish proved to be true once again that day. English fast bowler Jimmy Anderson smashed the stumps of Irish captain William Porterfield in the first ball of the innings to chase a huge target. However, Paul Sterling and Ed Joyce started the fight with an average of 72 runs after overcoming the initial push quickly. Bresnan broke the tie by returning Sterling who scored 32 runs. Joyce and Niall O'Brien added 41 runs for the third wicket. Niall O'Brien (29) was dismissed by off-spinner Graeme Swann in a minor collapse in the Irish innings. Joyce (32) and Gary Wilson (3) also returned quickly after Swann's injury and Ireland became 5 for 111 in 24.2 overs. More than half of the match is still left. Ireland needed 216 runs in the remaining 25.4 overs to win with the last 5 wickets in hand. This is where Kevin O'Brien's mission to make history begins with Alex Cossack! This Irishman was already well known as a hard hitter.

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Realizing to do justice to that name, he started attacking the wicket. Boundary hit the second ball to face! Graeme Swann hit two sixes in a row, Michael Yardy hit two boundaries in a row, Bresnan hit two fours in a row, one four and one six, and Anderson hit three boundaries in one over. Jimmy Anderson was thrown out of boundaries and completed the fifty with 30 balls! However, he spent only 20 balls to make the next 50! O'Brien's monstrous aggressive batting frenzy left Broad, Swan, Anderson, Bresnan in tears! He picked up the second ODI century of his career with just 50 balls! Earlier, Matthew Hayden had the record for the fastest century in the World Cup, with 7 balls. When O'Brien reached the three-figure magic figure with two runs off Yardy's ball, the roar of the gallery turned into the roar of the sea. As if Ireland is playing in their own country, not India! It cannot be said that Kevin O'Brien's explosive innings was absolutely chanceless. He got his life back in the hands of Strauss during the 91 runs. That was the only defect in the 'superhuman' innings of 13 fours and 6 sixes.

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The partnership with Alex Cossack's 173 off just 103 balls for the sixth wicket was the highlight of the match. Kusak's run out on 263 runs left the English with a little breath. Cusack's 47 off 56 balls (3 fours and 1 six) in the innings, which gave O'Brien a worthy accompaniment, is also remarkable. O'Brien himself was run out for 318 at the head of the team. I still want 11 runs from 11 balls to complete the story of the fairy tale! Only 3 wickets in hand! How can O’Brien’s teammates ignore this handful of histories! Yes, two unbeaten batsmen, John Mooney and Trent Johnston did the rest. And that's how Kevin O'Brien's incredible innings of 113 off 63 balls got immortality! Jimmy Anderson's boundary off the first ball of the last over, with five balls to spare, ensured the victory for John Muni, who gave a great cameo of 33 off 30 balls. Many were frustrated that nothing was happening at the World Cup. But if the Irish victory is called an upset, they may be treated unfairly. Because in a match, the team that gave birth to so many new World Cup records, to call the match a non-event means to shorten the winning team. Chasing the most runs in the World Cup, the fastest century in the World Cup, the 3-wicket victory of the 'Underdog' Ireland against the 'favorite' England should be considered as a historic achievement for world cricket.