The Times - UK (2020-07-31)

60 2GM Friday July 31 2020 | the times

SportEngland v Ireland: First one-day international

This was, of course, England’s first

home one-day international since win-

ning the World Cup at Lord’s last year,

and, with only four players in action

from that victorious team — captain

Eoin Morgan, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairs-

tow and Adil Rashid — it was always

likely that another name would star

here, but for David Willey to do that

was especially sweet.

Willey was horrendously unfortu-

nate to miss out on that World Cup

squad when Jofra Archer became avail-

able late in the run-in.

Lesser characters could have quietly

receded into the shadows, but here he

was at 30 years of age taking his first

ODI five-wicket haul and reminding

everyone not just of his particular skills

— if there is swing in a white ball, for

even the shortest time, the left-armer

usually finds it — but of England’s

exceptional depth.

It was also a good day for another

World Cup absentee, Sam Billings,

whose slim chances of playing in that

tournament were scuppered by a

shoulder injury and who may not have

played here had Joe Denly been fit.

Billings made an ODI best score of 67

not out off 54 balls as he orchestrated

England’s pursuit of only 173 to win

after Ireland had batted very naively.

Willey’s impact was immediate after

Ireland had been inserted. Paul Stirling

went to the fourth ball of the match as

he fell over to the off side and could only

chip Willey to Morgan at short mid-

wicket.

It was a tame dismissal and an early

indication of some flawed technique

and poor decision-making that was to

blight the early stages of this Irish

innings, albeit on a surface that proved

a lot tackier than it first appeared.

Andy Balbirnie, the captain, then

flayed wildly at Willey in his next over

to nick to wicketkeeper Bairstow before

20-year-old Harry Tector appeared on

debut. A first ODI run just would not

come for Tector and after nine balls he

played on with a crooked bat to the

sometimes slippery Saqib Mahmood

(occasionally up near 90mph).

While all this was going on, the open-

er Gareth Delany played some enter-

taining strokes, including three consec-

utive fours off Mahmood.

His unusual backlift, with his hands

high (not necessarily a bad thing) but a

long way from his body (not a good

thing), meant, though, that he could not

control a drive at Willey that skewed off

to Tom Banton at backward point.

When Willey trapped Lorcan Tucker

leg-before first ball after a review (Wil-

ley was not initially sure about ques-

tioning umpire Alex Wharf’s entirely

understandable original decision of not

out, with the ball perilously close to

pitching outside leg stump) Ireland

were 28 for five in just the seventh over.

It is a long old road back from there,

but it was one that 21-year-old debutant

Curtis Campher was at least prepared

to tackle.

First he found an ally in the veteran

Kevin O’Brien, putting on 51 before the

36-year-old O’Brien hit Rashid out to

wide long off.

Soon after, Simi Singh ran himself

out for a duck, attempting an impossi-

ble single to Banton at cover, and Ire-

land were 79 for seven. The South

Africa-born Campher needed another

companion on his arduous trek and the

left-handed Andy McBrine, driving

especially nicely square on the off side,

provided some valuable support in a

stand of 66.

Campher, compact, well organised

and much more comfortable once able

to pick Rashid’s googly (he was nearly

bowled trying to leave it early on),

passed fifty off 103 balls but lost both

McBrine (40 off 48 balls) and Barry

McCarthy to miscued pull shots.

Campher ended unbeaten on 59, with

only Morgan, with 99 in 2006 in his

superbly, passing fifty off only 41 balls

and putting on 96 with Morgan (36 not

out from 40 balls), who finished it in the

grand manner with his second six. En-

gland won with 22.1 overs remaining.

All rust factors notwithstanding, that is

a real hammering.

This was the first match in the new

World Cup Super League to sort quali-

fication for the World Cup in India in

2023 and the champions are nicely up

and running on their new journey.

Swing king

A Rashid (90 matches)

136

C Woakes (67)

96

L Plunkett (58)

95

M Ali (81)

64

M Wood (47)

58

D Willey (43)

49

B Stokes (66)

41

David Willey’s five-wicket haul

yesterday moved him sixth on the

list of most ODI wickets for England

since 2015, in four fewer matches

than anyone in the top seven

Billings plays a sweep shot in his calm innings of 67 not out as he and Morgan, the captain, helped England to victory after

previous life, having made more on Ire-

land ODI debut. Craig Young was the

last man out, caught at mid-off by the

diving Roy, to give Willey his fifth wick-

et, a fitting finale to a fine England

bowling performance, with spinners

Rashid and Moeen Ali typically effec-

tive and the only possible criticism

being a lack of real penetration in the

middle overs around them, where a

Mark Wood or Liam Plunkett might

have made Ireland’s life

even more miserable.

No-balls are now being

called by the third um-

pire rather the officials

on-field and McCarthy

overstepped in the first

over of England’s in-

nings. But much worse

was to come for the

bowler two balls later

when he suffered an

injury, forcing him off

without completing his

over.

This meant an early

introduction to the

attack for McBrine’s off

spin and it immediately

paid off when he

trapped Bairstow leg-

before upon review.

Again it looked a good original decision

from umpire Wharf – reasoning that it

had hit Bairstow outside the line of off

stump but again the technology went in

the bowler’s favour.

Bairstow’s perennial opening partner

Roy just could not get going, despite a

six hoisted over mid-wicket off

McBrine, and he was palpably leg-be-

fore to Young. England were

34 for two in the sixth over.

James Vince’s response to

such matters is usually pret-

ty rather than pragmatic,

so in Young’s next over

he struck three beauti-

ful fours before edging

behind in the same

bowler’s next over. It

was Vince all over.

Frustrating? Too right.

England were 59 for three

at the end of their power-

play, which does not look

great until you compare

it to Ireland’s 37 for five.

Morgan let Banton

and Billings bat above

him but Banton did not

take the opportunity,

allowing Campher to con-

tinue his dream debut as

he skied a front-footed

pull to the wicketkeeper.

But Billings grabbed his

chance, pulling, driving

and reverse-sweeping

F

Willey claimed a first

ever ODI five-wicket

haul in the victory

First ODI scoreboard

IRELAND R B

P R Stirling

c Morgan b Willey

Steered to mid-wicket

2 4

G J Delany

c Banton b Willey

Sliced full delivery to point

22 16

*A Balbirnie

c Bairstow b Willey

Edged a wide drive

3 7

H T Tector

b Mahmood

Width offered, chopped on

0 9

K J O’Brien

c Willey b Rashid

Failed to clear long off

22 36

†L J Tucker

lbw b Willey

Shaping in, hitting leg

0 1

C Campher

not out

59 118

Simi Singh

run out

Never a single, sent back

0 4

A R McBrine

c Billings b Curran

Caught in deep of a pull

40 48

B J McCarthy

c Vince b Mahmood

Heaved to deep square

3 11

C A Young

c Roy b Willey

Toed slower ball to mid-off

11 14

Extras

(b 4, lb 2, w 4)

10

TOTAL (44.4 overs) 172

Fall of wickets 1-2, 2-7, 3-28, 4-28, 5-28,

6-79, 7-79, 8-145, 9-156.

Bowling Willey 8.4-2-30-5; Mahmood

9-1-36-2; Rashid 10-3-26-1; Curran 7-0-37-1;

Ali 10-0-37-0.

ENGLAND R B

J J Roy

lbw b Young

Trapped in crease

24 22

†J M Bairstow

lbw b McBrine

Across stumps, hitting leg

2 7

J M Vince

c Tucker b Young

Edged an expansive drive

25 21

T Banton

c Tucker b Campher

Top edged front-foot pull

11 24

S W Billings

not out

67 54

*E J G Morgan

not out

36 40

Extras

(lb 6, nb 1, w 2)

9

TOTAL (27.5 overs; 4 wkts) 174

Did not bat: MM Ali, DJ Willey, AU

Rashid, TK Curran, S Mahmood.

Fall of wickets 1-12, 2-34, 3-59, 4-78.

Bowling Young 8-0-56-2; McBrine 8-0-

47-1; Campher 5-0-26-1; Singh 3.5-0-23-0;

Delany 2-0-12-0; McCarthy 0.5-0-3-0;

Stirling 0.1-0-1-0.

England v Ireland

Steve James

Billings and Willey serve up

Ageas Bowl (England won toss): England

beat Ireland by six wickets

Umpires A Wharf (Eng) and M Burns

(Eng). TV Umpire M Saggers (Eng).

Series details: First ODI England

won by six wickets. Second ODI

Saturday (Southampton). Third ODI

August 4 (Southampton).