Kevin O’Brien disappointed with the tie against Pakistan – Cricket News
Ireland’s premier all-rounder, Kevin O’Brien, is disappointed that he could not secure a victory for his side in the first One Day International (ODI) of the two-match series against Pakistan at Dublin.
Due to the all-rounder’s brilliant power-hitting, the encounter ended in a tie, with the second match scheduled to be played at the same venue on Sunday.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Misbah-ul-Haq-c1972 won the toss and opted to bat first in excellent batting conditions, although the overhead conditions remained cloudy in the morning. Because of a splendid 188-run partnership between Mohammad Hafeez
and Asad Shafiq, the Green Shirts posted a healthy total of 266 runs for the loss of five wickets on the board in their allotted 47 overs.
Needing 276 runs to win as per the Duckworth Lewis Method, the home team were off to a superb start through Paul Stirling, who registered a wonder ton. However, it was O’Brien, who took it upon himself and guided
his side to safety but only managed a tie.
While speaking to reporters after the fixture, the 29-year-old cricketer expressed his disappointment and rues the fact that he failed to help his team cross the line against Pakistan.
"It feels like a loss as we came so close, but just couldn't get over the line," O'Brien said. "If I had left [Saeed] Ajmal's delivery, it could have been a wide, but that is hindsight. You are in the moment
and you just swing a bat on it. We are not out to tie games, and that is why it feels like a loss, to be honest."
O’Brien scored 84 unbeaten runs off just 47 balls with the help of 11 boundaries and a couple of massive hits out of the park.
On the other side of the coin, Asad Shafiq, the Pakistan batsman, admitted that http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ireland-c751 gave his side an extremely tough time in the opening ODI.
"They played very well, and we are expecting another tough match," http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shafiq-c89281 said. "It will be very good preparation for our Champions Trophy campaign [in England in June]."
With the ICC Champions Trophy 2013 just around the corner, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 needs to raise their game in order to be competitive in the mega event.
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