Ireland’s Josh Little plays a shot during the ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup. Photo: Getty
The most important play of Ireland’s second T20 World Cup match against Canada in New York today is likely to come 30 minutes before the start of the Group A game when skipper Paul Stirling walks out to the middle for the toss.
“Win it and bowl” is what will be going through the minds of both captains, and a correct call could be the difference between Ireland marching on to Florida with their hopes of reaching the Super Eight alive, and starting to think about the flight home.
The fitness or otherwise of the ‘drop-in’ pitches at the pop-up Nassau County International Stadium has been the major talking point of the first week of the tournament with Sri Lanka blown away for 77, and Ireland also failing to reach three figures.
In both cases the team batting first had to contend with wildly variable bounce, and exaggerated sideways movement that would have made batting a lottery against far less potent attacks than those of South Africa and India.
Players and coaching staff at the World Cup are contracted to not say anything remotely controversial, so Ireland coach Heinrich Malan chose his words carefully when he said: “You need a good surface – unfortunately that is not what we saw.”
Apart from making a mockery of the game itself, a poor pitch can be dangerous as Harry Tector found out when he was struck on the right thumb, making him a doubt for the Canada game, and even superstar Rohit Sharma found himself in the wars.
The India captain was hit on the shoulder by Josh Little and had to retire hurt an over later, and his powerful management team are believed to have made their feelings known, despite winning comfortably by eight wickets.
The practice facilities have been no better on Long Island, with the Boys in Green following South Africa’s lead and cancelling yesterday’s planned practice session at Cantiague Park to avoid the chance of further injury to batsmen.
It was a bold decision by the ICC to take their showpiece T20 event to the USA for the first time but another rough surface in New York for Sunday’s mega clash between India and Pakistan doesn’t bear thinking about.
The umpires have a duty of care to the players and could be left with no choice other than to abandon perhaps the biggest game of the tournament, and disappoint 32,000 fans inside the stadium and an expected TV audience of more than a billion.
Canada v Ireland,
Live, Sky Sports, 3.30
