Ireland too strong in first match 5-nations T20I series

The Netherlands got off to a brisk start in their opening match of the series after Ireland sent them in to bat. The wicket of Tobias Visée 9 (4 balls) brought Ben Cooper to the middle. Together with Max O'Dowd the pair put together a 50-run partnership, both looking in fine form again, until a sharp bit of fielding saw O'Dowd 38 (23) just short of his crease. With the score on 69/2 off 7 overs, Colin Ackermann 27 (21), on his debut for The Netherlands, was happy to play a supporting role to the more aggressive Cooper 65 (45) (8x4, 1x6). By the time Ackermann got out The Netherlands were 123/3 in the 14th over and set for a big last five overs. A flurry of wickets and controlled bowling by the Irish however resulted in only 37 runs coming off the last 5 overs, Van der Merwe 22* (20), Netherlands 167/7.

Ireland controlled this relatively modest chase pretty well with all batsmen reaching double figures, although the Dutch bowlers didn't give too much away. Wickets were shared between Shane Snater 2-21/3, Paul van Meekeren 1-26/3.2 and Pieter Seelaar 1-28/3. With ten balls remaining Ireland brought it home with two consecutive boundaries, beating The Netherlands by 6 wickets.

Head coach Ryan Campbell: "It's a disappointing result against an excellent Ireland outfit. We were in the game and had our chances to drive home the advantage, but hats off to the Irish bowlers in the back end. Excellent from Ben Cooper. We will bounce back tomorrow against Nepal."

Full scorecard

Injury concern
The Netherlands might have to do without the in form Ben Cooper for the remaining of the 5-Nations series. Cooper suffered an ankle injury when he stood on the boundary rope while fielding. X-rays revealed no break, but he'll be undergoing further scans to reveal the extent of the injury.