Two-time champions West Indies suffered an unceremonious early exit from the T20 World Cup as Ireland thumped them by nine wickets to make it to the Super 12s. After the bowlers kept West Indies down to 146/5 despite Brandon King’s 62, Paul Stirling and Andy Balbirnie laid down the marker with an incredible opening stand. West Indies broke it but that’s as far as they could get with the ball as Ireland completed the chase comfortably with 15 balls to spare.

West Indies needed early wickets to make a match of their sub-par total but the Irish openers had other plans. They went hell for leather, bringing up their 50-run stand in just the fifth over. The carnage started in the second over – from Akeal Hosein – when the pair hit 16 off it. Nicholas Pooran brought on Odean Smith in the PowerPlay even before Jason Holder and that move was thoroughly punished too as Balbirnie smashed four, six, four in the first three balls of a 14-run over.

The fifty partnership came off an incredible pick up shot from Balbirnie against a full and wide ball from Obed McCoy, deposited over point fence. West Indies’ hero from the win over Zimbabwe too was not spared as Alzarri Joseph conceded 20 off his first two overs. The pair took Ireland to 64/0 – the team’s highest PowerPlay score in all T20 World Cups.

Akeal Hosein put an end to Balbirnie’s blitzy innings in the eighth over when he got him caught at backward point, but that was a mere consolation. Stirling carried on the Irish juggernaut, even as Pooran brought back Joseph in search of breakthroughs. To make matters worse, Odean Smith bowled a sharp bouncer and took a catch off his own bowling to dismiss Lorcan Tucker, only for the umpires to stop him from walking away as Smith appeared to have overstepped on the delivery. That summed up West Indies’ flat outing as Tucker too played some big shots on his way to a 35-ball 44 – while also getting the winning runs. Stirling meanwhile, finished unbeaten on 66 off 48 deliveries, with six fours and two sixes.

Barry McCarthy recovered from the thrashing he got in the previous game to hit the good length hard and eke out an early wicket as Kyle Mayers holed out to mid-off. Johnson Charles then hit back in the following over – off Curtis Campher – with two fours and a big six off a cutter. But off-spinner Simi Singh offered width and got the right-hander to slice one to backward point. West Indies got 41/2 in the PowerPlay, and went into the middle-overs with the need to shift gears quickly.

West Indies got just 26 runs in the four overs after the PowerPlay as Evin Lewis and Brandon King – back in place of Shamarh Brooks – revived the West Indies innings rather slowly against the Irish quicks. They got to 67/2 in 10 overs and needed to up the ante, but Ireland targetted West Indies’ recent weakness – spin bowling – to turn the screws further. Lewis didn’t read Gareth Delany’s googly and miscued a big hit to mid-off. Nicholas Pooran, who made a confident start and even pulled a Joshua Little delivery into the stands, was undone by the flight offered by Delany too as he sliced one to deep point. Delany had his third when Rovman Powell slog-swept him straight to the deep square leg fielder in the 17th over. He finished with figures of 3 for 16 in 4 overs, including 12 dot balls.

Despite the wreckage around him, King went on to get a 39-ball half-century and joined forces with Odean Smith for a three-over flourish at the end. The duo hit 34 off the last three overs to push West Indies to 145/6. As it turned it, that total proved to be grossly insufficient.

Brief Scores:

West Indies 146/5 in 20 overs (Brandon King 62, Johnson Charles 24; Gareth Delany 3-16) lost to Ireland 150/1 in 17.3 overs (Paul Stirling 65*, Andrew Balbirnie 37) by 9 wickets

(Cricbuzz)