Kevin O'Brien Blazes Ireland To Victory

After a spirited start to their huge run chase Ireland began to fall away as Graeme Swann three wickets during a teasing spell to put England on track for a comfortable victory. James Anderson gained a confidence-boosting wicket with the first ball of the innings, but Paul Stirling play some meaty shots in an entertaining innings until Tim Bresnan struck then Swann made his mark as the asking rate climbed.

After two poor matches Anderson made the perfect start when William Porterfield, the Ireland captain, dragged the opening delivery into his stumps. However, the batsmen knew there was no point prodding around and Stirling hooked his fifth ball from Stuart Broad for six. Broad was taken for three more boundaries by Stirling, as his open three-over spell cost 24, and he also talked Andrew Strauss into wasting a review when an lbw shout against Ed Joyce clear pitched outside leg stump.

Strauss rung the changes in the first 10 overs, including an early over for Michael Yardy, but it was the reliable Bresnan who broke a threatening stand of 62 when Stirling tried to launch another shot over the leg side and picked out Kevin Pietersen. Bresnan should have had a second when Joyce, on 21, top edged a pull but Matt Prior spilled a simple chance one ball after another chance had brushed Anderson's finger tips as he dived forward at midwicket.

Bresnan's first four overs cost 15 but he strayed in his fifth as Niall O'Brien collected two boundaries to keep Ireland in touch with the run rate. However, at the other end they were finding it tougher to score off Swann and the pressure could have told with a wicket but Anderson allowed O'Brien's lofted drive to burst through his hands for six.

Paul Collingwood was introduced as England's other pace-off option and his cutters were tricky to force away with O'Brien resorting to a variety of sweeps and paddles to try and score. He was clearly conscious of the rising run rate and heaved across the line at Swann without making contact. Collingwood grassed a tough return chance offered by Gary Wilson, but it wasn't long before the next wicket as Swann spun a beauty past the advancing Joyce to end Ireland's slim chance and Wilson became Swann's third when he missed a sweep.

50 overs England 327 for 8 (Trott 92, Bell 81, Pietersen 59, Mooney 4-63) v Ireland

Led by Jonathan Trott's 92, England's top order continued its productive form as they posted a hefty 327 for 8 against Ireland in Bangalore. Trott, who equalled the record for reaching 1000 ODI runs in fewest innings by matching the 21 taken by Viv Richards and Kevin Pietersen, added 167 for the third wicket with Ian Bell as the Irish attack struggled to stem the scoring rate on a flat surface although late wickets restricted the onslaught.

Andrew Strauss and Pietersen laid a strong platform by adding 91 for the first wicket although both played poor shots when much bigger scores were on offer. Pietersen's reverse sweep off Paul Stirling was especially disappointing after a brisk 59 but Trott isn't a man to forgo such run-scoring opportunities so wastefully. The third-wicket stand finished as England's third best in World Cups, nestled behind the Strauss-Bell alliance from three days ago, and Trott was set for his fourth ODI hundred until missing a booming drive against John Mooney who ended with four wickets.

For the first time in the tournament England needed to set a target after Strauss decided to bat first and Pietersen made his intent clear with three early boundaries off Boyd Rankin. Strauss had a nervous moment as a top edge looped over George Dockrell at fine leg for six, but having hit such heights against India with his 158 it wasn't surprising that his early strokeplay lacked the clarity of that innings. However, with Pietersen in such commanding touch it was the captain's turn to let someone else lead the way.

Ireland were hampered by the absence of the steady Andre Botha who took 3 for 32 against Bangladesh and struggled to maintain control. In the build-up to the match William Porterfield, the Ireland captain, hinted he may open the bowling with Dockrell's left-arm spin but it wasn't until the 12th over that the 18-year-old appeared. Pietersen was quickly down the pitch and flicked him through midwicket to bring up fifty from 40 balls and it was all very easy for England.

Perhaps it was too easy, because both openers played needless shots when there was a chance of copious boot-filling. Strauss walked across his stumps to try and manufacture a shot through fine leg and Pietersen, having crunched another six over midwicket off Mooney, top-edged a reverse sweep in Stirling's first over who became an unexpected weapon with his offspin.

Pietersen has never been a batsman to shine when opposition or conditions haven't tested him but he'd thrown away the ideal chance for his first ODI century since 2008. England, though, continued to move along at a healthy rate as Trott started brightly. He slotted consecutive boundaries off Mooney then started to work the ball around neatly as he settled alongside Bell.

Ireland nearly separated them by a run out when Trott was late to react to Bell's call for a second to deep square and if the throw had gone straight to the bowler's end, rather than the keeper first, Trott would have been found short. But it was their only alarm as they milked an unthreatening attack where batsman error was the main form of dismissal.

Stirling did a good job in controlling the run rate but Bell cut loose when he skipped down the pitch and lofted Dockrell over long off. Trott, meanwhile, moved along in typically unobtrusive style and went to his fifty off 55 balls. When he reached 64 he notched 1000 ODI runs and joined the exclusive club alongside Richards and Pietersen.

Bell's was a lovely, easy, innings as he built with smart placement and deft touches to tick off his fifty from 61 balls. The batting Powerplay, which derailed England's chase against India, was taken at the start of the 38th over and this time it proved more profitable with 45 runs coming, but were also aided by some loose deliveries with both Alex Cusack and Dockrell spearing five wides down the leg side.

Dockrell didn't quite live up to the hype with his 10 overs costing 68 and coupled with another expensive display from Rankin it made for a tough day, while some fumbling ground fielding didn't help Ireland's cause. Bell fell to the final ball of the fielding restrictions when he was well caught at midwicket off Mooney, who continued to do a valuable job for his team by removing Trott.

The innings didn't quite finish in the convincing manner that England would have wanted as Matt Prior was bowled by Johnston's slower ball and Paul Collingwood picked out long-on three balls after clearing the same man. Johnston became the first Ireland bowler to take 50 ODI wickets when another slower delivery did for Michael Yardy and the final five overs only brought 33 runs. But while 338 wasn't enough for India three days ago England will expect to defend this with room to spare.

Live Score England vs Ireland

For the first time in the tournament England needed to set a target after Strauss decided to bat first. Pietersen made his intent clear in the first over when he clipped Boyd Rankin through midwicket and at the start of Rankin's next over two further boundaries followed including a flowing straight drive. Strauss's first four was less convincing as he carved an edge down to third man and then he had a nervous moment as a top edge against Rankin looped over George Dockrell at fine leg for six. 

Live Score England vs Ireland

Lasith Malinga Takes Hat Trick

 

Sri Lankan pace bowler Lasith Malinga has become the second player in as many days to take a World Cup hat-trick, during a six-wicket haul against Kenya.

 

Malinga achieved the feat in a spell of four wickets in six balls as Kenya were dismissed for 142 in Colombo.

On Monday, Kemar Roach took a hat-trick as his West Indies side beat the Netherlands by 215 runs in New Delhi.

This is Malinga's second World Cup hat-trick, after he took four South African wickets in four balls in 2007.

It is also the seventh hat-trick to be taken at a World Cup.

India's Chetan Sharma took the first against New Zealand in 1987, which was followed by Saqlain Mashtaq's treble for Pakistan against Zimbabwe 12 years later.
Both Chaminda Vaas (for Sri Lanka, in their encounter with Bangladesh) and Brett Lee (for Australia against Kenya) took hat-tricks in the 2003 tournament.

In Colombo, Malinga's 6-38 has given co-hosts Sri Lanka a superb opportunity to secure victory over Kenya, which will get their Group A challenge back on track following last Saturday's 11-run loss to Pakistan.

Malinga's Yorkers Dismantle Kenya

Lasith Malinga announced his return to full fitness by storming his way to an unprecedented second World Cup hat-trick with an exhibition of yorker-on-demand bowling that proved too much for Kenya's tail at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The visitors imploded to 142 all out despite dogged half-centuries from the Obuya brothers, who enjoyed plenty of fortune in a determined 94-run stand that kept the varied threats of Sri Lanka's bowling at bay for nearly 30 overs.

The Obuyas weren't exactly convincing - testing every edge of their bat, surviving close lbw calls, regularly air-driving outside off and rarely reading the spinner's variations - but hung on obdurately to take Kenya into triple-digits. A solid platform was in place when they had hauled Kenya to 102 for 2, but Malinga's burst demolished the tail as the final eight wickets were blasted out for 40 runs. None of the other Kenyan batsmen made it past single-figures.

The Kenyan collapse was rapid: it took only 22 deliveries for them to go from 127 for 4 to being bowled out. Muttiah Muralitharan started it off by getting the set batsman David Obuya to slog-sweep to midwicket.

Then it was Malinga time. Jimmy Kamande barely found his bearings after being struck by a toe-crusher, and decided to go for a single when the ball was only a couple of metres away from him. Chamara Silva pounced from midwicket and did a passable imitation of Jonty Rhodes from 1992 to crash into the stumps and dismiss Kamande.

Tanmay Mishra was next, becoming the first victim of Malinga's hat-trick after missing a full delivery on leg stump to fall for a 13-ball duck. It was the final ball of the over, and Malinga gave Peter Ongondo the warmest welcome possible to the tournament in the first ball of his next - a yorker that uprooted middle. The staggered dismissals meant many in the crowd weren't aware that Malinga was on a hat-trick. He steamed in and middle stump was dismantled again next ball, the clueless batsman this time was Shem Ngoche.

Attention then shifted to whether Malinga could repeat his outrageous four-in-four from the 2007 World Cup, but he sprayed a wild delivery for five leg-side wides. Elijah Otieno defended the next ball, but that was followed by another unstoppable yorker from Malinga that thud into leg stump to end Kenya's innings. Malinga had taken four in five legal deliveries to finish with 6 for 38.

A tiresomely familiar tale seemed set to play out earlier in the afternoon when Kenya slid to 8 for 2 in the third over. Nuwan Kulasekara and Malinga removed the openers cheaply with their favourite weapons - Kulasekara getting Maurice Ouma with an inducker, and Malinga dislodging Seren Waters with an inswinging yorker that left the batsman on his knees.

The Obuyas ensured there wasn't a repeat of Kenya's house-of-cards performance against New Zealand. Kulasekara gave away only nine runs in a constricting six-over opening spell, but Kenya were more at ease against Angelo Mathews, who was taken for a couple of boundaries.

Sri Lanka brought on the spin of Ajantha Mendis in the 14th over to break the frustrating stand, but though the batsmen weren't sure which way the ball would turn, they survived his bag of tricks with some dour defence. Kumar Sangakkara then turned to Muttiah Muralitharan to get the wickets, but though there were leading edges and outside edges, Murali couldn't break through, with the batsmen negotiating him with a series of sweeps.

It was painfully slow progress from the Obuyas, and after more than two hours of defiance, it was that most deadly of weapons that separated them - a Malinga yorker. Some more of those left Sri Lanka chasing a tiny target in front of a raucous Colombo crowd.

West Indies Hand Netherlands 215 Run Thrashing Win

Kemar Roach lifted the spirits on a dank day of World Cup action by becoming the sixth bowler to claim a World Cup hat-trick as West Indies cruised past a disappointing Netherlands outfit in Delhi.

Roach's whippet pace and low trajectory overwhelmed Netherlands who, set 331 for victory, were left to regret their captain's decision to field first. He finished the game in style, trapping Pieter Seelaar and Bernard Loots lbw before splattering Berend Westdijk's middle stump to seal a 215-run victory.

After the World Cup found its voice in a nerve-shattering encounter on Sunday evening it reverted to an inaudible mumble on Monday as Canada capitulated against Zimbabwe in Nagpur, before Netherlands put up an embarrassing showing. Gone was the intensity and discipline that spooked England as they allowed West Indies to saunter to victory with more than 18 overs left unused.

This was an important match for West Indies who, coming into it, looked in danger of being drawn into a qualification dogfight in Group B. If they are to beat Bangladesh to the quarters they need their big guns to fire and they would have been relieved that Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard found their form before Roach's heroics.

Smart stats The 215-run win is West Indies' biggest margin of victory in ODIs, going past their earlier record of 208 runs against Canada in Kingston last year. It's also the joint sixth-largest by any team in World Cup history. West Indies' total of 330 is their second-highest in World Cups, and seventh-best in all ODIs. Kemar Roach's hat-trick is the 28th in ODI history, and the sixth in World Cups. He is also the first West Indian to achieve this feat in World Cups, and the second in all ODIs, after Jerome Taylor. Chetan Sharma, Saqlain Mushtaq, Chaminda Vaas, Brett Lee and Lasith Malinga are the others to take a hat-trick in World Cups. Roach's figures of 6 for 27 are the fourth-best by a West Indian bowler in ODIs, and the second-best in World Cups, after Winston Davis' 7 for 51 against Australia in 1983. Keiron Pollard's 23-ball half-century is the joint fourth-fastest in terms of balls faced in World Cups. Brendon McCullum's 20-ball effort against Canada in 2007 is the fastest, while the next two belong to Mark Boucher in the same tournament: off 21 balls against Netherlands, and 22 balls against West Indies.

It was only a composed but futile 55 not out from Tom Cooper that dragged Netherlands past their lowest-ever ODI total - 80 against West Indies four years ago - in a showing that did themselves, and the beleaguered Associate brand, a total disservice.

Roach operated consistently around the 90mph mark and was happy to aim full at the stumps - a tactic shunned by England's bowlers against the same opposition - and Netherlands' batsmen were not up for a fight.

Though he took six wickets, the crucial, crushing blow was landed by towering left-arm-spinner Sulieman Benn. Ryan ten Doeschate, the hero against England and the sole player in the side with the quality to mount a challenge, was trapped low on the front pad and despite a long stride, and a review, he could not survive. Thereafter it was only Cooper who could resist Roach's pace.

The rot was set earlier in the day when Gayle made a measured 80 and Pollard a 27-ball 60 that carried West Indies out of sight. Pollard blended his immense power with the touch of savvy that has been absent from his 50-over game so far to bring up only his second ODI fifty. His assault gave a crowd deprived of much excitement something to cheer and emphatically confirmed that Borren's decision to field first on a pudding pitch and speedy outfield was the wrong one.

Devon Smith's silky fifty allowed Gayle plenty of time to rouse himself into the contest. At no stage were West Indies pinned down but it did take Gayle 24 deliveries to find the boundary. ten Doeschate's first over shattered his shackles as he drove three times through the covers, before collecting two more boundaries in the next over. He looked poised to explode from thereon but was instead content to coast and make the most of some generous Netherlands offerings.

The seam bowlers leaked runs both sides of the wicket and it was only the 23-year-old left-arm-spinner Pieter Seelaar who impressed. With an action and temperament similar to his touted Irish counterpart George Dockrell, Seelaar was happy to give the ball air and was rightly rewarded when Gayle holed out to long-off, one run shy of his 8000th in ODI cricket.

At that stage, two balls into the batting Powerplay, West Indies looked like suffering the same hoodoo that has infected many other teams throughout the tournament, but in Pollard they had the right man for the stage. There was the customary six-hitting, including a monstrous strike into the stands off Mudassar Bukhari, but there was plenty of nous too as he raced to his fifty from 23 balls, the joint fourth-quickest in World Cup history.

Ireland Look To Make Statement

Has everyone caught their breath after Bangalore's last match? It was an epic tie and the remaining games in the tournament will struggle to match it. Still, this group looks set to provide most of the intrigue over who will make the quarter-finals because Ireland are good enough to upset one of the big teams.

They had a great chance against Bangladesh until the batting failed to chase down 206 but now have England in their sights. While the cricket rivalry between the two countries has yet to reach the level seen in rugby, for Ireland this is a massive contest where they'll be desperate to make a statement and cause a shock.

England will need to be on their guard and will want an improvement in the bowling department which, apart from Graeme Swann against Netherlands and the immense Tim Bresnan against India, has been below par. Lifting themselves after the events on Sunday won't be easy. Ireland have come close to claiming their scalp before. In the hangover of the 2009 Ashes, England hung on for two-run victory in Belfast and at the World Twenty20 last year, Ireland believed they had a good chance of chasing down 120 before the rain game in Guyana.

Ireland are a leading light among the Associates, showing what is possible with a well-structured game and a core of experienced players. A number of mini-battles will be worth watching, including Ed Joyce against the England attack, the Warwickshire duel of Boyd Rankin bowling against Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott and the vastly talented left-arm spinner George Dockrell.

England India Tie A Treat

Sunday morning provided two things for cricket addicts scattered around the U.S.chewed-up fingernails and a timely shot in the arm for the Cricket World Cup. In a match that took a series of dramatic twists and turns, England tied India -- which arguably left fans of both teams happy.



India posted what seemed like an insurmountable score of 338 runs batting first, only for England to come out on fire in reply. In fact, England breezed to a World Cup record for runs scored by a team batting last. And although India's bowlers sparked another dramatic rally in the final 45-minute passage of play, England turned the game around again with four balls remaining. Yet with two needed to win off the last ball, Graeme Swann could only manage a single for England, providing a rare but perhaps appropriate end to the contest.

 

The match will be best remembered for the near-flawless batting displays from Sachin Tendulkar and Andrew Strauss. While Tendulkar was once again superb for India, Strauss was all but untouchable for England. The effect was like watching Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal go toe to toe at Wimbledon. Strauss had no business getting England anywhere close to India's total, thanks to 120 from Tendulkar. But three hours later, Strauss raised the bar and propelled his team with a sublime 158.



So why all the fuss over a tie? A common misconception is that this kind of thing happens all the time in cricket. After all, it's a sport in which teams can play a match for up to five days with neither team winning at the conclusion. That amounts to a tie, right? Not exactly.



In the five-day Test format, if a team can't get the opposition out but the opposition doesn't score the runs required to win before the end of the five days, the match is declared a draw. It's a stalemate. The subtle difference: In a tie, the team batting last gets out having made the exact same number of runs as the opposition. In 135 years of Test cricket, there have been 694 drawn matches, but only two ties. The structure of the rules for One Day Internationals eliminates the draw as a possible result, but a tie is just as rare -- and Sunday's tie was just the fourth in World Cup history.



The last World Cup tie happened in 2007, when Zimbabwe, needing 222 to win, stumbled badly against Ireland. If you compare the situation to England's on Sunday, both teams had four wickets in hand with 24 balls to play. While England needed 42 runs to win, Zimbabwe needed just 12 runs in the same circumstances and couldn't come through.



In a total debacle at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, the hosts tied Sri Lanka when the South African batsmen misunderstood the adjusted score required to win if the game were to be stopped early because of rain. The confusion led to South Africa failing to go for the single it needed on the last ball before play was halted. The result led to South Africa being eliminated after the group stage.



The only World Cup tie that ranks above this past weekend's contest in Bangalore is a 1999 semifinal in England between South Africa and Australia, a match that is widely considered to be the greatest ODI contest of all time. Australia fought to 213 thanks to 65 from Michael Bevan, whose clutch performances for the Aussies are on par with the playoff exploits of Lenny Dykstra.



South Africa was comfortably headed toward the 214 needed to win until an epic bowling performance by the legendary Shane Warne tilted the game back in Australia's favor. Going into the last over with six balls remaining, South Africa needed nine runs to win and had its last two men at the crease. With four balls to go, Lance Klusener hit back-to-back fours to tie the game. But two balls later, his partner Allan Donald inexplicably failed to run after Klusener set off for a panicky single and Donald was run out to end the match.



Donald's brain freeze ranks up there with Chris Webber's attempted timeout call at the end of the 1993 NCAA title game or Fred Brown's pass to James Worthy in the closing seconds of the 1982 NCAA final. Because Australia had beaten South Africa earlier in the tournament, Australia advanced to the final and eventually won the World Cup.



The England-India tie didn't quite top the 1999 semifinal tie, but it came close. If England and India meet again in the knockout stage and can produce even half the drama of this past encounter, it will be well worth watching.