‘If it was, I would have slowed it down even more’- Andrew Balbirnie counters Jos Buttler’s ‘gamesmanship’ allegations on Ireland
England was stunned by Ireland in their 20-20 World Cup match on Wednesday, falling by 5 runs thanks to the Duckworth Lewis method (DLS).
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Oct 27, 2022 1:38 pm
Jos Buttler-Andrew Balbirnie (source: Twitter)
England was stunned by Ireland in their 20-20 World Cup match on Wednesday, falling by 5 runs thanks to the Duckworth Lewis method (DLS). England was 86 for 5 in 13.1 overs while chasing a target of 157. The English batting lineup was hampered by an excellent bowling performance by the Irish.
Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone were in the middle with England needing 53 off 33 balls when rain intervened once more. Despite the batters’ efforts, England appeared to be trailing the DLS par score. The game was eventually called off.
In the post-match press conference, England captain Jos Buttler slammed Ireland for their slow over rate. Buttler, however, admitted that England had already lost the game before that point and that they should accept responsibility for the loss.
“If we were ahead, they wouldn’t have been slowing the game down,” he said. “Yeah, it’s certainly something, whether it’s gamesmanship. I knew the rain was coming and could slow the game up. I think we had lost the game before that point. As I mentioned, we had all the things we needed in our favour. If we were ahead, they wouldn’t have been slowing the game down. So I think we should take responsibility ourselves, and we should never let it get to that kind of situation,” Buttler added.
I was trying my best to get out through the overs quick: Andrew Balbirnie
Buttler’s statement was contradicted by Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie. He claimed that the players were slow on the field due to the large size of the ground. “No, it wasn’t. Our lads are just really slow on the pitch. It was a huge ground. It wasn’t gamesmanship. If it was, I would have slowed it down even more and we maybe would have been 5 or 6 overs down. Certainly, I was trying my best to get out through the overs quick because I didn’t want to rely on the weather,” Balbirnie said.
England’s next match is against Australia on Friday, while Ireland plays Afghanistan on the same day.
