Win over England can kickstart new golden generation - Balbirnie
Skipper Andy Balbirnie believes his Ireland side can be a new "golden generation" after landing a famous win over England at the T20 World Cup.
The near neighbours faced off for just the second time in 20-over cricket at the MCG, with England taking up a familiar position as heavy favourites in the Super 12 clash.
But they found themselves on the receiving end of a remarkable bloody nose, sliding to a five-run defeat after failing to keep up with the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern rate when rain forced the teams from the field.
It was a famous result and one that was richly earned. An 82-run stand between Balbirnie (62) and Lorcan Tucker (34) laid the foundations with bat, before Josh Little took two quick wickets with the new ball to lead a steadfast defence.
The celebratory scenes at the close, as the boys in green embraced their friends, family and followers in the stands, were reminiscent of a famous triumph at the 50-over World Cup in Bengaluru back in 2011.
Back then it was all-rounder Kevin O'Brien whose record-breaking century downed England and put Irish cricket on the map, a feat that now has a fitting contemporary companion.
"It’s surreal, an absolutely surreal feeling. It happened too quickly to take in what we have just achieved," said Balbirnie, who was player of the match.
"In T20 cricket it’s probably the best (win ever). I’ve played in this team for a number of years and we’ve never had a result like this. We came into this round knowing any win we got would be a huge achievement and we’ve beat the best T20 team there is in my opinion.
"I looked through their team this morning, looking at match-ups and part of me was struggling to understand how we could compete with them if they showed up."
On the transitional shift from