England flirted with one of the great T20 World Cup upsets in Mumbai before getting their campaign under way with victory against Nepal by four runs and, although they did not lose the game, Sam Curran insisted they had lost any sense of complacency.
“We take those two points and take great confidence, because it wouldn’t have been a nice dressing room this evening,” said Curran, who conceded just five runs in the final over to decide the game.
“I’ve played a lot of T20 cricket. When you win the close ones they’re actually the ones that give you a little boost and a bit of a smile on your face.
“The associate nations are getting so much better. Some of the shots in the last few overs … it’s serious stuff. You can’t underestimate these guys any more.”
Will Jacks said of Curran: “He’s won us that game. It was ebbs and flows the whole way. I thought it was almost lost with six balls to go. Winning ugly is a great trait. It’s incredibly difficult to replicate that experience and a game like today, where we potentially weren’t expecting it to go down to the last ball and it has.
“When we get in that situation in the rest of the tournament, which we definitely will at some stage, we’ll be able to look back on this experience and take that with us.”
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Roundup: Ireland slip to Sri Lanka defeat, NZ make record chase
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Ireland slipped to a 20-run defeat against T20 World Cup co-hosts Sri Lanka in their Group B opener in Colombo. Having won the toss and opted to bowl, Ireland restricted Sri Lanka to 71 for three by the end of the 11th over after George Dockrell picked up two wickets.
Kusal Mendis finally gave the home crowd something to get behind as he pushed the total on, but was fortunate to be dropped three times in the 17th over. Barry McCarthy then took two wickets in two balls to dismiss Kamindu Mendis for 44 off just 19 balls, and Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka for a golden duck. Kusal Mendis then brought up his half-century as the co-hosts made 163 for six.
Ireland lost captain Paul Stirling (six) in the fourth over of their reply when he was bowled by Maheesh Theekshana, but a determined 34 from Ross Adair saw them on to 72 for two at the halfway stage. Lorcan Tucker (21) and Harry Tector (40) chipped away at the run-chase and Ireland were 104 for two after 14 overs, needing 60 from the last six.
Sri Lanka fought back to make regular breakthroughs – with Theekshana dismissing Ben Calitz and Gareth Delany in successive deliveries – as Ireland finished short, all out for 143 with one ball left after losing their last eight wickets for 38. Wanindu Hasaranga and Theekshana claimed three wickets each.
Earlier, New Zealand secured a decisive five-wicket win over Afghanistan after chasing down 183-5, their highest ever at the T20 World Cup, with two overs to spare.
Afghanistan’s Gulbadin Naib scored 63 off 35 balls, helping his team post 182-6. Tim Seifert led New Zealand’s response with 65 runs, overcoming early setbacks. Glenn Phillips contributed 42, partnering with Seifert for a 74-run stand. Despite efforts from Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan, New Zealand accelerated in the middle overs, and Mark Chapman and Daryl Mitchell’s cameos sealed victory. Agencies
England next play West Indies on Wednesday but in the moments before he delivered the crucial over Curran already had their second opponents on his mind, specifically Carlos Brathwaite’s four successive sixes off Ben Stokes to settle the 2016 World Cup final in their favour.
“I weirdly thought of the 2016 final when Carlos got hold of Stokesy,” Curran said. “I was thinking: ‘Well, if I execute he’s not going to hit me for six.’ I just watched his feet and thankfully executed. Those games are great to win, but wow it would have been a horrible one to lose.”