Women’s World Cup T20: England make it two wins in a row to beat Ireland in rain

England beat Ireland by 4 wickets (Image credit: T20 World Cup’s X handle) Hosts England maintained their winning momentum in the Women’s World T20 Cup with a hard-fought four-wicket victory over Ireland in their Group B clash at the Hampshire Bowl in Southampton on Tuesday.After crushing Sri Lanka by 87 runs in the opening match, England followed it up with another win to strengthen their title bid. Sophie Ecclestone led the attack with the ball and claimed 3/22 as Ireland were restricted to 118/9 after England opted to play under cloudy skies.Charlie Dean was equally impressive, returning paltry figures of 2/11 and contributing 20 dot balls, while Danielle Gibson chipped in with 2/10. A disciplined England attack bowled a total of 60 runs to keep the pressure on Ireland.

Ireland is recovering from a premature collapse

Ireland endured a disastrous start, slumping to 25/3 inside five overs after losing openers Amy Hunter and Alana Dalzell and captain Gaby Lewis. But Orla Prendergast struck with a quick 26 off 18 balls and hit four boundaries to stay in the match.Louise Little then provided a late flourish when she smashed Lauren Bell for four boundaries in the final over as Ireland collected 17 runs from him – their most productive of the innings – to finish on a competitive 118/9.

Do you think Ireland had a chance to win the game against England?

Sciver-Brunt and Knight save England

England were chasing 119 as Ireland struck three times during the over to reduce the visitors to 35/3. Aimee Maguire removed both Amy Jones and Danni Wyatt-Hodge while Prendergast produced a fine yorker to dismiss Alice Capsey.With England reeling, captain Nat Sciver-Brunt and veteran Heather Knight leveled the innings with a crucial 64-run partnership. The pair rotated their strike smartly and punished loose deliveries to regain control of the chase.Knight fell for 26 while Sciver-Brunt was injured for 48, agonizingly short of a half-century.

The hosts will survive a late jitters

England still had nervous moments when Freya Kemp ran out, but with the target within reach, Dean and Gibson guided the hosts to 119/6 in 17.3 overs.The win ensured England’s back-to-back wins in the tournament and further cemented their position as early favourites. Ireland, meanwhile, were left to rue missed opportunities after briefly threatening to get upset with the ball.