# Ireland at the Cricket World Cup

The Ireland cricket team is the cricket team representing all of Ireland. Since 2017 they have been a Full Member of the International Cricket Council. Although Cricket in Ireland has had a presence since the early 1800s, it was in 1993 the Irish Cricket Union, the predecessor to Cricket Ireland, was elected to the International Cricket Council (ICC) as an Associate member. In the 1997 ICC Trophy, Ireland narrowly missed out on qualifying for the 1999 Cricket World Cup, which was ironically co hosted by Ireland, Scotland, England and the Netherlands. Ireland qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 2007, and has since played in the 2011 and 2015 tournaments, and the 2010, 2012, and 2014 World Twenty20 competitions. Ireland's best world cup performance was in 2007, where they surprisingly qualified for the Super 8 Stages.

## Cricket World Cup Record

| Year | Round | Games | Won | Tied | Lost |
| 1975 | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member |
| 1979 | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member |
| 1983 | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member |
| 1987 | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member |
| 1992 | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member | Not an ICC member |
| 1996 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1999 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2003 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2007 | Super 8 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| 2011 | Group Stage | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 2015 | Group Stage | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Total | Super 8 | 21 | 7 | 1 | 13 |
White: Group/Round-Robin Stage
Green: Quarter-Finals/Super Six/Super 8
Light Blue: Semifinals
Silver: Runner-up
Gold: Champions

### World Cup Record (By Team)

Cricket World Cup matches (By team) :
| Total : 7 Wins – 1 Ties – 13 Losses – 21 games played |||||
| Against | Total | Wins | Ties | Losses |
| Australia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Bangladesh | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| England | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| India | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Netherlands | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Pakistan | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| South Africa | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Sri Lanka | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| United Arab Emirates | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| West Indies | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Zimbabwe | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Source: Last Updated:15 March 2015 |||||

## 2007 World Cup

Ireland's performance in their inaugural World Cup in the 2007 tournament took many pundits by surprise. Their first game was on 15 March when they tied with Zimbabwe, primarily thanks to Ireland's first ever World Cup century by man-of-the-match Jeremy Bray and economical bowling in the final overs by Trent Johnston and Andre Botha. In their second match, played on Saint Patrick's Day, they beat the fourth-ranked team in the world, Pakistan, by three wickets, thus knocking Pakistan out of the competition. These two results were sufficient to advance Ireland to the Super 8 stage of the tournament. Their final group stage game was against the West Indies, where they lost by eight wickets. In the Super 8 stage, they lost their four matches against England, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, and Sri Lanka, but recorded a 74-run victory against the 9th ranked team in the world and Test playing nation Bangladesh. The team received a heroes welcome in Dublin.

### Group stage

* 15 March 2007 Scorecard
| Ireland 221/9 (50 overs) | v | Zimbabwe 221 (50 overs) |
| Jeremy Bray 115* (137) Elton Chigumbura 2/21 (6 overs) | | Stuart Matsikenyeri 73* (76) Kyle McCallan 2/56 (9 overs) |
* Match tied Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica Umpires: Ian Gould (Eng) and Brian Jerling (SA) Player of the match: Jeremy Bray (Ire)
Ireland had a much better first outing than fellow World Cup debutants Bermuda, managing a tie against the Test nation of Zimbabwe after Jeremy Bray scored his second One Day International century in the space of six weeks. Bray put on 43 with Eoin Morgan for the second wicket, but two wickets from Elton Chigumbura set them back to 64 for four after 15 overs.
Bray remained in, however, carrying his bat to 115 not out and sharing partnerships of 54 with Andrew White, 37 with captain Trent Johnston and 39 with Dave Langford-Smith. Zimbabwe used spinners Prosper Utseya, Sean Williams and Stuart Matsikenyeri at the end, who conceded few runs, ending with combined figures of 56 runs from 17 overs. Chigumbura, who had taken the top order wickets, was not reintroduced at the death.
In reply, Zimbabwe made their way to 20 overs with the loss of one wicket, slightly ahead of Ireland's total. However, Johnston broke through when he had Chamu Chibhabha caught, while Vusi Sibanda crept back on the stumps, dismantling a bail to be out hit wicket for 67 as he took off to make a single, not realising his misfortune. Another misfortune struck when Brendan Taylor was run out, essentially by the batsmen on strike (Matsikenyeri) who returned McCallan's ball with a fierce straight drive, taking Taylor's wicket down in the process.
Nevertheless, after Stuart Matsikenyeri's half-century, they required 15 runs with 36 balls remaining; however, they only got six of those runs off the next 30 balls, with Gary Brent and Chris Mpofu rarely managing to get off the strike. Kevin O'Brien, whose only over had cost eight runs, was brought back in the 49th, and he took one wicket and had Mpofu run out in a maiden over. Zimbabwe now needed nine off the last over with only a wicket in hand. Matsikenyeri hit two twos and a single, Ed Rainsford got off the strike with a single off his only ball, before Matsikenyeri tied the scores with a cut for two. With one ball, one wicket and one run in contention, Rainsford's desperate dash caused him to be run out and the match a tie - the third of World Cup history.
* 17 March 2007 Scorecard
| Pakistan 132 (45.4 overs) | v | Ireland 133/7 (41.4 overs) |
| Kamran Akmal 27 (47) Boyd Rankin 3/32 (9 overs) | | Niall O'Brien 72 (107) Mohammad Sami 3/29 (10 overs) |
* Ireland win by 3 wickets (D/L method) Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Brian Jerling (SA) Player of the match: Niall O'Brien (Ire)
* Rain and bad light reduced Ireland's target to 133 from 47 overs.
Pakistan, ranked fourth in the ICC ODI Championship tables before the tournament, were eliminated from the tournament after five days, an event described by BBC in an online report as "unthinkable". Niall O'Brien made 72, but was out stumped with 25 runs still to get and had to watch as his brother Kevin O'Brien and Trent Johnston put on 20 for the eighth wicket to win the game.
Pakistan were put in to bat, and were bowled out for 132, with extras being the top scorer as Ireland offered 23 wides. Pakistan's captain Inzamam-ul-Haq still credited Ireland's bowlers with bowling "tight lines", while taking the blame for "too many poor shots", as all ten batsmen were out caught. Boyd Rankin took the most wickets, including Younis Khan and top-scorer Kamran Akmal, while Andre Botha's spell of five runs from eight overs also yielded the wickets of Inzamam and opener Imran Nazir.
When Ireland batted, Bray, who had made a hundred in the previous match, fell lbw to Mohammad Sami, who took three for 29 after being left out of the side four days earlier. Ireland fell to 15 for two, but O'Brien and William Porterfield added 37 before Porterfield played a ball from Mohammad Hafeez onto his stumps and was bowled. O'Brien made shots off Hafeez, however, who ended with 15 runs off four overs, one of the three most expensive bowlers of the game. He was eventually stumped for 72, before Iftikhar Anjum struck twice in two balls, Ireland now needing 20 with three wickets in hand. Kevin O'Brien and Trent Johnston got there, however, with Ireland captain Johnston winning the game with a six, the second of the game.
Following the defeat and early exit from the World Cup, there was a huge negative reaction from the millions of passionate Pakistani fans and government, calling for the captain, coach and the president of the board to resign.
* 23 March 2007 Scorecard
| Ireland 183/8 (48 overs) | v | West Indies 190/2 (38.1 overs) |
| Jeremy Bray 41 (72) Chris Gayle 2/23 (10 overs) | | Shiv Chanderpaul 102 (113) Dave Langford-Smith 1/33 (9 overs) |
* West Indies win by 8 wickets (D/L method) Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Ian Gould (Eng) Player of the match: Shiv Chanderpaul (WI)
* Rain adjusted West Indies' target to 190 from 48 overs.
* Ireland qualified for the Super 8 stages despite this defeat.

### Super 8 Stage

* 30 March 2007 Scorecard
| England 266/7 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 218 (48.1 overs) |
| Paul Collingwood 90 (82) Boyd Rankin 2/28 (7 overs) | | Niall O'Brien 63 (88) Andrew Flintoff 4/43 (8.1 overs) |
* England won by 48 runs. Providence Stadium, Georgetown, Guyana, Guyana Umpires: Billy Doctrove (WI) and Simon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match: Paul Collingwood (Eng)
England won the toss and batted first, but lost both openers to Boyd Rankin in six overs, before Ian Bell spent 74 balls making his 31. When Bell got out, the run rate was slightly above 4; in the final 28 overs it was in excess of 6, with Paul Collingwood making 90, Kevin Pietersen 48 and Andrew Flintoff 43. Kyle McCallan was the most economical bowler for Ireland, and also took the wicket of Pietersen.
Chasing 267 in reply, Niall O'Brien's third One-day International fifty and his second of the World Cup helped Ireland to a total of 139 for six in the 37th over, but despite faster than a run a ball scores from Trent Johnston and Andrew White Ireland fell 48 runs short as Andrew Flintoff took the final two wickets, though they exceeded their previous World Cup record total by seven runs.
* 3 April 2007 Scorecard
| Ireland 152/8 (35 overs) | v | South Africa 165/3 (31.3 overs) |
| Andrew White 30 (30) Charl Langeveldt 3/41 (7 overs) | | Jacques Kallis 66* (86) Boyd Rankin 2/26 (7 overs) |
* South Africa won by 7 wickets (D/L method) Providence Stadium, Georgetown, Guyana, Guyana Umpires: Daryl Harper (Aus) and Simon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match: Jacques Kallis (SA)
* Rain caused South Africa's target to be revised to 160 from 35 overs.
* 9 April 2007 Scorecard
| New Zealand 263/8 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 134 (37.4 overs) |
| Peter Fulton 83 (110) Kyle McCallan 2/35 (10 overs) | | Kevin O'Brien 49 (45) Daniel Vettori 4/23 (8.4 overs) |
* New Zealand won by 129 runs. Providence Stadium, Georgetown, Guyana, Guyana Umpires: Steve Bucknor (WI) and Simon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match: Peter Fulton (NZ)
* 13 April 2007 Scorecard
| Ireland 91 (30 overs) | v | Australia 92/1 (12.2 overs) |
| John Mooney 23 (44) Glenn McGrath 3/17 (7 overs) | | Adam Gilchrist 34 (25) Trent Johnston 1/18 (3 overs) |
* Australia won by 9 wickets. Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Rudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match: Glenn McGrath (Aus)
* Australia's win confirmed their place in the top four. Ireland could not now qualify for the semi-finals.
* 15 April 2007 Scorecard
| Ireland 243/7 (50 overs) | v | Bangladesh 169 (41.2 overs) |
| William Porterfield 85 (136) Mashrafe Mortaza 2/38 (10 overs) | | Mohammad Ashraful 35 (36) Kyle McCallan 2/25 (8 overs) |
* Ireland won by 74 runs. Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Steve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match: William Porterfield (Ire)
* Ireland's total of 243/7 was their highest in World Cup matches.
* Bangladesh's loss meant that they could not now qualify for the semi-finals.
* 18 April 2007 Scorecard
| Ireland 77 (27.4 overs) | v | Sri Lanka 81/2 (10 overs) |
| Jeremy Bray (cricketer) 20 (29) Muttiah Muralitharan 4/19 (5 overs) | | Mahela Jayawardene 39* (27) Dave Langford-Smith 1/29 (3 overs) |
* Sri Lanka won by 8 wickets. National Cricket Stadium, Grenada Umpires: Mark Benson (Eng) and Billy Doctrove (WI) Player of the match: Farveez Maharoof (SL)

## 2011 World Cup

The 2011 World Cup was held between February and March and hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. Though Ireland did not progress beyond the first round they secured a historic victory against England. Ireland beat England by 3 wickets with Kevin O'Brien hitting the fastest century in World Cup history, managing the feat in just 50 balls. In passing England's total of 327 for victory, Ireland broke the record for the highest successful run chase in the World Cup.
* 25 February 2011 Scorecard
| Bangladesh 205 (49.2 overs) | v | Ireland 178 (45 overs) |
| Tamim Iqbal 44 (43) Andre Botha 3/32 (9 overs) | | Niall O'Brien 38 (52) Shafiul Islam 4/21 (8 overs) |
* Bangladesh won by 27 runs Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pak) and Rod Tucker (Aus) Player of the match: Tamim Iqbal (Ban)
* Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat.
Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan won the toss against Ireland and elected to bat, after conceding 370 against India after setting them in. His decision seemed to be vindicated at the start of Bangladesh's innings, with Tamim Iqbal unleashing a flurry of boundaries immediately, to take Bangladesh to 49/0 after 5 overs. Ireland needed a moment of inspiration and they got it from wicketkeeper Niall O'Brien who did a brilliant stumping to send Imrul Kayes on his way. Ireland quickly built on it, with a direct hit from Ed Joyce catching Junaid Siddiqui short, before both Tamim and Shakib were also dismissed softly. Mushfiqur Rahim and Raqibul Hasan staged a recovery then, and at 147/4 in the 34th over, Bangladesh looked well set for a score above 250 until Mushfiqur top-edged a sweep of George Dockrell. This triggered another collapse, and only a late cameo from Naeem Islam took Bangladesh to 205.
Ireland started off solidly in their reply, but then the Bangladesh spinners led by Shakib and Mohammad Ashraful took wickets at regular intervals. The match was evenly poised with Ireland 93/4 after 25 overs. Niall O'Brien was the key to the chase but with the score at 110, he was dismissed after a brilliant catch by Tamim Iqbal. Kevin O'Brien continued to fight, taking Ireland above 150 and giving them another sniff at victory till he holed out to deep square-leg off Shafiul Islam. A pumped-up Shafiul then ran through the tail, and Ireland were all out for 178, falling 27 runs short.
Shafiul Islam recorded the best figures for a Bangladeshi bowler in World Cup matches, with 4/21.
* 2 March 2011 Scorecard
| England 327/8 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 329/7 (49.1 overs) |
| Jonathan Trott 92 (92) Trent Johnston 2/58 (10 overs) | | Kevin O'Brien 113 (63) Graeme Swann 3/47 (10 overs) |
* Ireland won by 3 wickets M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pak) and Billy Bowden (NZ) Player of the match: Kevin O'Brien (Ire)
* England won the toss and elected to bat.
England batted first with Jonathan Trott top-scoring, with 92 from 92 balls. During his innings, Trott reached 1,000 runs in ODI cricket, from just 21 innings, equalling the record set by Vivian Richards and team-mate Kevin Pietersen. England batsmen Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell also hit half-centuries, with Trott and Bell sharing a 177 run partnership. England finished on 327/8 from their 50 overs, having only scored 33 runs from their last 5 overs.
In reply, Ireland lost their captain, William Porterfield in the very first ball, and were struggling at 111/5 after 25 overs. Kevin O'Brien came in with the score at 106/4, and made 100 in just 50 balls, the fastest century in World Cup history. Ireland scored 62 runs in their batting powerplay, and by the time that Kevin O'Brien was run out for 113 from 63 balls, Ireland required only 11 from 11 balls. Ireland won the match by 3 wickets, with five balls to spare; it was the largest successful run chase in Cricket World Cup history.
* 6 March 2011 Scorecard
| Ireland 207 (47.5 overs) | v | India 210/5 (46 overs) |
| William Porterfield 75 (104) Yuvraj Singh 5/31 (10 overs) | | Yuvraj Singh 50* (75) Trent Johnston 2/16 (5 overs) |
* India won by 5 wickets M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Rod Tucker (Aus) Player of the match: Yuvraj Singh (Ind)
* India won the toss and elected to field.
* Yuvraj Singh became the first player to score a 50 and take 5 wickets in a World Cup match.
* 11 March 2011 Scorecard
| West Indies 275 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 231 (49 overs) |
| Devon Smith 107 (133) Kevin O'Brien 4/71 (9 overs) | | Ed Joyce 84 (106) Sulieman Benn 4/53 (10 overs) |
* West Indies won by 44 runs Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh Umpires: Asoka de Silva (SL) and Shavir Tarapore (Ind) Player of the match: Kieron Pollard (WI)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
* 15 March 2011 Scorecard
| South Africa 272/7 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 141 (33.2 overs) |
| JP Duminy 99 (103) John Mooney 1/36 (8 overs) | | Gary Wilson 31 (48) Robin Peterson 3/32 (8 overs) |
* South Africa won by 131 runs Eden Gardens, Kolkata Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (SL) and Billy Doctrove (WI) Player of the match: JP Duminy (SA)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
* After this victory, South Africa became the first team to qualify for the quarter-finals from Group B. Ireland were eliminated following this defeat.
* 18 March 2011 Scorecard
| Netherlands 306 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 307/4 (47.4 overs) |
| Ryan ten Doeschate 106 (108) Paul Stirling 2/51 (10 overs) | | Paul Stirling 101 (72) Tom Cooper 2/31 (7 overs) |
* Ireland won by 6 wickets Eden Gardens, Kolkata Umpires: Billy Doctrove (WI) and Ian Gould (Eng) Player of the match: Paul Stirling (Ire)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to field.

## 2015 World Cup

Ireland qualified for the 2015 Cricket World Cup, and were promoted to the ICC ODI Championship, leaving the World Cricket League, but not the ICC Intercontinental Cup. In their first match of the World Cup, Ireland defeated the West Indies by 4 wickets, chasing down 304 runs with 25 balls to spare. In their second match they beat the United Arab Emirates by two wicket with four balls to spare; the target was 279. Out of only five successful World Cup chases of 300 runs or more, Ireland have provided three of them.
* 16 February Scorecard
| West Indies 304/7 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 307/6 (45.5 overs) |
| Lendl Simmons 102 (84) George Dockrell 3/50 (10 overs) | | Paul Stirling 92 (84) Jerome Taylor 3/71 (8.5 overs) |
* Ireland won by 4 wickets Saxton Oval, Nelson Umpires: Richard Illingworth (Eng) and Bruce Oxenford (Aus) Player of the match: Paul Stirling (Ire)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
The West Indies were put into bat by Ireland, who reduced them to 31/2 and 87/5 before Lendl Simmons and Darren Sammy shared a 154 run partnership. They finished their 50 overs with a score of 304/7. In reply, Ireland made 71 runs before losing their first wicket. Paul Stirling and Ed Joyce made a partnership of 106, before Stirling was dismissed. Niall O'Brien finished 79* from 60 balls, to get Ireland over the line with more than four overs remaining. This was Ireland's fourth World Cup victory over a Test playing side and their third successful chase of 300 or more runs in a World Cup.
* 25 February (D/N) Scorecard
| United Arab Emirates 278/9 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 279/8 (49.2 overs) |
| Shaiman Anwar 106 (83) Paul Stirling 2/27 (10 overs) | | Gary Wilson 80 (69) Amjad Javed 3/53 (9 overs) |
* Ireland won by 2 wickets Brisbane Cricket Ground, Brisbane Umpires: Michael Gough (Eng) and Nigel Llong (Eng) Player of the match: Gary Wilson (Ire)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to field.
* Shaiman Anwar became the first UAE player to score a century in a World Cup game.
* The 107-run partnership between Shaiman Anwar and Amjad Javed was the highest seventh-wicket partnership in World Cup history.
* 3 March (D/N) Scorecard
| South Africa 411/4 (50 overs) | v | Ireland 210 (45 overs) |
| Hashim Amla 159 (128) Andrew McBrine 2/63 (10 overs) | | Andrew Balbirnie 58 (71) Kyle Abbott 4/21 (8 overs) |
* South Africa won by 201 runs Manuka Oval, Canberra Umpires: Steve Davis (Aus) and Ranmore Martinesz (SL) Player of the match: Hashim Amla (SA)
* South Africa won the toss and elected to bat.
* South Africa became the first team to score 400 in two consecutive ODI innings. Their total is also the second-highest in World Cup history.
* Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis' partnership of 247 is the highest second-wicket partnership for South Africa in ODIs.
* 7 March (D/N) Scorecard
| Ireland 331/8 (50 overs) | v | Zimbabwe 326 (49.3 overs) |
| Ed Joyce 112 (103) Tendai Chatara 3/61 (10 overs) | | Brendan Taylor 121 (91) Alex Cusack 4/32 (9.3 overs) |
* Ireland won by 5 runs Bellerive Oval, Hobart Umpires: Ruchira Palliyaguruge (SL) and Paul Reiffel Player of the match: Ed Joyce (Ire)
* Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field.
* Zimbabwe and United Arab Emirates were eliminated from the World Cup as a result of this match.
* 10 March 14:00 (NZDT) (D/N) Scorecard
| Ireland 259 (49 overs) | v | India 260/2 (36.5 overs) |
| Niall O'Brien 75 (75) Mohammed Shami 3/41 (9 overs) | | Shikhar Dhawan 100 (85) Stuart Thompson 2/45 (6 overs) |
* India won by 8 wickets Seddon Park, Hamilton Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (SL) and Richard Kettleborough (Eng) Player of the match: Shikhar Dhawan (Ind)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to bat.
* India were confirmed as winners of Pool B as a result of this match.
* India's victory was their ninth consecutive win in World Cups, extending their longest winning streak.
* 15 March 14:00 (ACDT) (D/N) Scorecard
| Ireland 237 (50 overs) | v | Pakistan 241/3 (46.1 overs) |
| William Porterfield 107 (131) Wahab Riaz 3/54 (10 overs) | | Sarfraz Ahmed 101* (124) Alex Cusack 1/43 (10 overs) |
* Pakistan won by 7 wickets Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Marais Erasmus (SA) and Ruchira Palliyaguruge (SL) Player of the match: Sarfraz Ahmed (Pak)
* Ireland won the toss and elected to bat.
* Sarfraz Ahmed became the first Pakistan wicketkeeper to score a century in a World Cup match.
* Pakistan and West Indies qualified for the quarter finals as a result of this match.
* Ireland were eliminated from the World Cup as a result of this match.