Ireland have posted 268 for 5 wickets in the first innings of this World Cup qualifier in Amsterdam, in a match that will see Ireland qualify for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 2015 if they can defend their total.
On yet another sunny hot day in Amsterdam Ireland again won the toss and batted. Both teams were unchanged from Sunday’s encounter. Porterfield and Stirling got Ireland off to a fine start putting on 73 for the first wicket before Porterfield was bowled by Swart for 30 in the 14th over. Stirling and Ed Joyce took the score to 97 when Stirling played a lazy shot against the left arm unorthodox spinner Rippon and was caught for 49.
This brought Niall O’Brien to the crease and he and Joyce put together a splendid partnership of 113 in just over 23 overs and never looked in any trouble against a Dutch attack that bowled with discipline but lacked penetration. O’Brien reached his second successive half century with 4 fours before being bowled by Cooper.
For once Kevin O’Brien failed, only contributing 4 before being caught on the boundary trying to force the pace. At this point Ireland appeared set to make 300 but despite another superb and classy innings by Joyce, Ireland couldn’t maintain the run rate to reach that total. Joyce ended up 96 not out and he certainly deserved to reach another century.
The Dutch bowlers stuck to their task with Swart in particular bowling an economical ten over spell and took one wicket for 44 runs. While Bukhari was the only bowler to take 2 wickets he was expensive conceding 63 runs in his ten overs.
Although this is a better batting wicket than the one on Sunday, the Netherlands will need to bat considerably better than they did then to challenge the Ireland total and keep their own qualification hopes alive.
Odran Flynn
©INPHO/Presseye/Rowland White
