Pundit Arena Because Sport Is Everything New Zealand proved to be too strong for Ireland in Adelaide, as the Kiwis won by 35 runs to go top of Group 1 and put one foot in the semi-finals.
Although a win for Ireland always looked unlikely, a hat-trick from Joshua Little, in which the 23-year-old claimed three consecutive wickets in the 19th over of New Zealand’s innings, was a considerable highlight.
Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie was speaking after the game and was happy with his country’s overall performance at the T20 World Cup. “We played a top-class team and when you play such teams, you need to capitalize on all opportunities.
We bowled well right through the tournament, the fielding was a bit off,” Balbirnie said . “It was nice to set up a platform , that has been a trend in this tournament, but we needed someone to kick on from there. “We’re quite happy with what we achieved.
Compared to where we were in the last 12 months we have improved a lot, especially against good teams and we are looking forward to meeting these sides once again.” A tournament to remember, for so many reasons , thank you, as ever, for your support ❤️ #T20WorldCup #BackingGreen ☘️🏏 pic.twitter.com/s9QY0cdvUb , Cricket Ireland (@cricketireland) November 4, 2022 Reaching the World Cup semi-finals was always going to be an enormous challenge for Ireland, and while it never really looked like qualifying for the final four was a possibility, it was a memorable tournament for the Irish nonetheless.
After an opening defeat to Zimbabwe in the first round, Ireland bounced back with wins against Scotland and the two-time T20 World Champion West Indies to qualify for the Super 12.
Ireland managed just one win in the Super 12 stage, although it will go down as a famous one, as they beat England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.