The England team successfully chased down the 200+ target to take 2 – 0 lead in the series against Ireland. Despite the fact that the England ODI team isn’t at their best, they managed to seal the ODI series by winning the 2nd ODI match. Now, Ireland is aiming for a consolation win in the 3rd and the final match of the series.
Ireland failed to get a good start in the second ODI as well. They lost 5 wickets before reaching a score of 100. It was becoming difficult for the Irish team to put a high score on the board. Finally, Curtis Campher came to the rescue and made the hopes alive by scoring 50+.
Even after winning both the matches, England is still searching for a smoother batting display. They were reduced to lower scores (78/4 and 137/6) both times by the Irishmen. After Bairstow played the crucial inning of 82 runs off just 41 balls, the three wickets of Bairstow, Morgan, and Moeen put the visitors back in the game. But the all-important partnership between David Willey (47*) and Sam Billings (46*) sealed the deal for the host.
The second match took the same route as the first match one. Though Ireland fought better compared to the first match, there is still a lot of improvement needed esp in the top order with both the openers Stirling and Gareth failing to make a mark in the series. The world champions also need to be more consistent with their top order with Roy putting a weak show.
England might experiment with their playing XI a little, to test the players who did not get the chance to play in the previous matches. If they do change the playing XI, then there is a chance of Liam Livingstone and/or Liam Dawson’s comeback.
Ireland’s bowling has been impressive in this ODI series. However, there is a little struggle seen with the new ball. Ireland must be looking to promote the in-form, all-rounder Curtis Campher up in the batting order. He has scored 50+ in both the matches and the same is expected for the 3rd match as well.
Ireland will aim to put high scores on the board and win the final match, whereas England will focus on improving their batting strength.
Fantasy Cricket prediction:
Jonny Bairstow, the player of the match, scored magnificent 82 runs off 41 balls. With this score, he became the joint-fastest batsman to reach 3000 ODI runs. His inning was the key factor for winning the match. His ODI stats at Rose Bowl have also improved: 5 ODIs, 321 runs, average 80.25, and SR 126.87.
Curtis Campher has got a great start to his ODI career by scoring 59 runs off 118 balls in the first ODI and 68 runs off 87 balls in the second ODI. Also, he has 3 wickets in the two matches (1 wicket in the 1st ODI and 2 wickets in the second ODI).
Sam Billings has proved his mettle by giving a superb performance in both the matches. His 67* (54) in the first ODI and 46* (61) in the second ODI proved to be crucial in England’s 2 – 0 lead over Ireland.
Adil Rashid performed exceptionally well in this match also. His 3 – 34 spell set the second ODI for England. Also, he is the highest wicket-taker in England – Ireland ODIs.
David Willey has shown his bowling skills in these last two ODIs by taking stunning 5 wickets in the first ODI, and 2 wickets in the 2nd ODI. He also proved his batting capability by scoring 47* runs off 46 balls.
Joshua Little has been quite successful with bowling. He took 3 wickets in the second ODI and 4 wickets in the first ODI.
Paul Stirling (Ireland’s highest ODI run-scorer) and Andy Balbirnie (1,171 runs, avg. 39.09 since 2018) are still not able to deliver the performance justifying their ODI stats. They need to provide a solid platform for Ireland.
Eoin Morgan, Moeen Ali: still not had a happy series so far. They need to improve their play for this final ODI match.
Jason Roy has not been able to play effectively in the previous matches. Looking at his ODI stats, he is expected to improvise in this match.
Pitch report and weather prediction:
The pitch for the final match will be a different one than the last two matches. However, it is expected that this pitch will have something for everyone, as it has been the case in the last two ODIs and the Test so far this summer.
Also, the weather will be mostly sunny. The chances of rain are very low.
Stats:
In the last 2 ODIs, the Ireland team batted first and lost both the matches. However, they gave a tough competition to the host in both the encounters. England has lost early wickets of top-order on both occasions.
The average score of the first innings at Southampton is 240.29. The team batting second has won four of the past seven matches.
1st ODI match result – ENG won by 6 wickets
2nd ODI match result – ENG won by 4 wickets
Top Scorer(s):
Jonny Bairstow (WK) – 82 runs off 41 balls
Curtis Campher (ALLR) – 68 runs off 87 balls
Top Wicket-taker(s):
Adil Rashid (BWL) and Joshua Little(BWL) – 3 wickets each
Saqib Mahmood (BWL), Curtis Campher (ALLR) and David Willey (BWL) – 2 wickets each.
| Player | Position | Avg. FPs | |
| England | David Willey | BWL | 143.5 |
| Jonny Bairstow | WK | 91.5 | |
| Sam Billings | BAT | 80.5 | |
| Adil Rashid | BWL | 78 | |
| Saqib Mahmood | BWL | 63 | |
| Ireland | Curtis Campher | ALLR | 122.5 |
| Joshua Little | BWL | 108 | |
| Andy McBrine | BWL | 56 |
Captain picks: David Wiley (BWL) (ENG), Curtis Campher (ALLR) (IRE), Jonny Bairstow (WK) (ENG)