132/9 (20.0)
CR : 6.60
184/7 (20.0)
CR : 9.20
Belfast Wolves won by 52 runs 🏆
Player of the Match
Glenn Maxwell
60(38)
Mark Chapman was joined by his skipper Glenn Maxwell then and their 84-run stand changed the complexion of the game. They arrested the collapse and took the innings forward steadily with boundaries at regular intervals. Mark Chapman finally perished in the 17th over, but scored 54 off 33 balls before that. Maxwell's carnage continued beyond that as he hit 2 fours and 4 sixes on his way to score 60 off 38 balls. He was dismissed in the final over, and the Wolves comfortably reached to 184.
Dublin Guardians won the toss and elected to bowl first. Paul Stirling and Tim Tector opened the batting for the Belfast Wolves. Stirling hit a few boundaries and the opening partnership yielded 44 for the Wolves. But they lost Tim Tector in the fifth over and Joshua Little accounted for Stirling (31) and Lorcan Tucker (0) in back-to-back deliveries. Ravichandran Ashwin trapped Devon Conway in front to reduce the Wolves to 68/4 in the 9th over.
6:57 PM IST and 3:27 PM Local Time: Belfast Wolves have started their journey with a massive victory over Dublin Guardians by 52 runs. Glenn Maxwell led his side from the front and Mark Chapman assisted him to put a competitive total of 184 on the board. Dublin Guardians were out of the game with 36/6, but some lower order resistance helped them to get 132/9 on the board and elude the embarrassment of a bigger defeat.
Ravichandran Ashwin (Dublin Guardians captain): "(Assessment of this match?) We had pockets of good cricket that we played, and then we were bad in the other half. Not a good start in the powerplay with the bat. Lot of guys are extremely excited. We'll let that one past, we'll take the learnings from it and keep the positives.
(Feelings at the halfway stage?) I think about 170-175 was about par. Maybe about 5-10 runs more than what we might have wanted to give. 175 was definitely chasable. We were able to do a bit of fightback from the lower-order, but if we had a better powerplay, our chances would have been slightly higher.
(On performances from the Irish internationals) Dockrell's extremely experienced, has a lot of quality, shows what he is capable of today. I think he was pretty unlucky with the ball. Impressed with what Matt Hollard did today as well, to come back. He had a no ball in the first over, came back nicely, showed a bit of spunk towards the end. That's what you want to see. Some character, some real attitude, and that's what we'll try and get us back in the tournament."
(Feelings at the halfway stage?) I think about 170-175 was about par. Maybe about 5-10 runs more than what we might have wanted to give. 175 was definitely chasable. We were able to do a bit of fightback from the lower-order, but if we had a better powerplay, our chances would have been slightly higher.
(On performances from the Irish internationals) Dockrell's extremely experienced, has a lot of quality, shows what he is capable of today. I think he was pretty unlucky with the ball. Impressed with what Matt Hollard did today as well, to come back. He had a no ball in the first over, came back nicely, showed a bit of spunk towards the end. That's what you want to see. Some character, some real attitude, and that's what we'll try and get us back in the tournament."
Time for the post-match presentations.
Player of the Match: Glenn Maxwell
Glenn Maxwell (Belfast Wolves Captain and Player of the Match): "(On the sensational start to the tournament) Yes it could not have got any better. We are very proud of the efforts. To get a going, get a start- we could not have asked for a better one. We were clinical with the ball, adept with the bat, adapted to the conditions well.
(On his partnership with Mark Chapman) Yes we lost one or two wickets too many that early in the game. We had to bat a bit differently and adopt to that situation. We took it a little bit easier against the spinners and set up for the back end.
(On Mark Chapman's innings) He was outstanding. We always talk about in the change room that there's one boy you want to watch bat and it is him. Such a great timer of the ball, such a clean hitter, he showed his class today. Hopefully, it is just the start of things to come.
(On the Belfast boys- Mark Adair and Matthew Humphreys) He (Adair) is outstanding. I think we have done a few premium things and having him is one of them. He is one of those key players whom we were happy to get early and it paid dividends first game.
(On the good start to the tournament) First of all, I was a little bit nervous in the start as rain forced a delayed start. But the Sun came out, people came out. Hopefully things get bigger and better."
(On his partnership with Mark Chapman) Yes we lost one or two wickets too many that early in the game. We had to bat a bit differently and adopt to that situation. We took it a little bit easier against the spinners and set up for the back end.
(On Mark Chapman's innings) He was outstanding. We always talk about in the change room that there's one boy you want to watch bat and it is him. Such a great timer of the ball, such a clean hitter, he showed his class today. Hopefully, it is just the start of things to come.
(On the Belfast boys- Mark Adair and Matthew Humphreys) He (Adair) is outstanding. I think we have done a few premium things and having him is one of them. He is one of those key players whom we were happy to get early and it paid dividends first game.
(On the good start to the tournament) First of all, I was a little bit nervous in the start as rain forced a delayed start. But the Sun came out, people came out. Hopefully things get bigger and better."
Rain forced a 30-minute delayed start to this game, but it could not dampen the spectacle. Glenn Maxwell brought the fireworks in his very first game of the tournament and bagged the player of the match award for his valiant 60-run knock. Mark Chapman aided him with the bat, Mark Adair, Matthew Humphreys and the entire bowling unit showed a collective effort to restrict the Dublin Guardians to 52 runs short of the target. Belfast Wolves will be looking to build on this fantastic start, while Ravichandran Ashwin will try to regroup his team, Dublin Guardians ahead of their next encounter.
Up next, we have the second game of today's double-header between Edinburgh Castle Rockers and Glasgow Cosmic. Do join us for that coverage as the first ball has already been bowled as we type.
For now, this is Saptak Sanyal, signing off on behalf of my co-commentator Rajarshi Das and the scorer/analyst Sachin Yadav.