IF YOU THINK the Irish cricket team are getting carried away with their six-wicket win over reigning Twenty20 World Champions West Indies in Jamaica on Wednesday, think again.
Yes, it’s a win to be savoured but, from captain William Porterfield to man of the match Ed Joyce, you get the sense that nothing short of a series win will satisfy this team after last night’s heroics.
“[It was a] fantastic effort all round; it’s a great feeling but there’s also a feeling that there’s more to come from us. We’ve got two more big games against them but, at the moment, it’s just sinking in and we’ve had a great result.”
When asked to compare it to Ireland’s win over Pakistan at the same venue during the 2007 World Cup, Porterfield claimed the two were very different as that was the first occasion Ireland had beaten a test-playing nation.
“Back then there was a lot more excitement, it was the first time we’d beaten a big team but, from my point view, the teams point of view, yeah we’ve done a great job but we’ve to come back in two days and do it all again.”
That’s a view shared by man of the match Ed Joyce.
“We played brilliantly. The bowlers set it up with a very polished performance, a professional performance. The wicket suited us I think, suited our type of bowlers and we made good decisions with the ball and fielded very well too.
“It’s brilliant. There’s a strange atmosphere around because, obviously we’ve got two big games to come so it’s nice that we weren’t jumping around and celebrating as if we’d won the World Cup because we know we’ve got business to do in the last two games.”
That said, Joyce is very aware of the significance of Ireland’s achievement in beating the reigning Twenty20 champions in their own backyard.
“They’re a scary team to play against, they have a lot of power with Dwayne Smith and Chris Gayle opening up, Marlon Samuels coming back into the team.
“They have a lot of fire-power in their bowling including, probably, the best Twenty20 bowler in the world in Sunil Narine.
“We were chasing a smallish total so you know — even if you lose a few early wickets – as long as you stay positive and keep trying to score yourself at a run a ball you can do well.”
The second Twenty20 International with West Indies takes place Friday at 7pm GMT.
