Ireland secure famous T20 hat-trick over England

Ireland scored a memorable victory over England in Melbourne on Wednesday, a second major scalp having already knocked off the West Indies in the first round.It is the third time the boys in green have celebrated a white-ball victory over their neighbours. Here, PA news agency looks at their hat-trick of upsets.An upset to rank alongside the best the sport has seen. Not only did the unfancied Irish overpower a star-studded England side featuring the likes of Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Strauss, Graeme Swann, James Anderson and Stuart Broad, they did it in record-breaking fashion. England posted 327 for eight in the 50 over – a handy enough score now, but an even bigger one at the time, and looked to be safe as houses until Kevin O’Brien conjured the performance of a lifetime. He clubbed a 50-ball century, still a World Cup record, and finished with 113. John Mooney finished the job for him, sparking joyous celebrations.Due to the bio-secure restrictions of the Covid-hit summer of 2020, there were no fans around to witness a magnificent Ireland win in Southampton. In an echo of the previous match on this list, England appeared to be in a healthy position at the halfway stage having piled up 328 all out on the back of a hundred from their Dublin-born skipper Eoin Morgan. But, with the series already lost, Ireland threw caution to the wind and won in style. Paul Stirling blazed away firing six sixes and nine fours on his way to 142, Andy Balbirnie hit 113 of his own and the target was met off the penultimate ball of the match.Having battled hard to qualify from a tightly-contested first round, Ireland were looking to add a prize scalp after progressing. They faltered against Sri Lanka but came up trumps in the big one against England. A strong start with the bat was partially thrown away as they lost nine wickets for 54, but a bowling performance of skill and discipline meant they choked the chase off. With rain always forecast, England were unable to nudge in front of the DLS par as five wickets tipped the scales in Ireland’s favour. When the rain came Moeen Ali looked ready to turn the tables but he did not get the chance to finish what he started.