So far in the World Cup, the ICC's stance on minnows not being a part of it from 2015 has proved ably justified. Every team that is sub-standard, has been treated as such. However, it is also a fact that since 1996, each World Cup has seen at least one minnow upset an established Test nation.
If there is anything in that, it would suggest that in this World Cup too, an upset is waiting to happen. In the first match in Bangalore after the epic tied one, England will want to ensure that the upset that is due, happens another day. Team News:
England: England will be going into the match high on confidence. Not only did they chase an imposing total under the lights in the second innings, but they did it against a side that had 40,000 people cheering their every move. They will also be boosted by the return of Stuart Broad, who missed the match against India. Broad's entry will almost certainly mean that Ajmal Shahzad - who struck the six that enabled the tie - will sit out of the final eleven. England's batting was shown to be world class, and with Andrew Strauss in exceptional form, the Pietersen-Strauss combo at the top of the order will be difficult to contain. England's only real worry is their bowling, and more specifically the bowling of spearhead James Anderson. Anderson has gone for plenty of runs in both ODIs England have played so far, and while it hasn't cost them a match yet, it nearly did against India, and surely will in the future if he doesn't get his act together. If England sort out their bowling woes, they will go from being amongst the good sides in the World Cup to being a formidable one.
Ireland: Ireland gave Bangladesh the fright of their lives, but ultimately could not keep up and ended up losing their first tie. They will have seen how the Indian batsmen and the Netherlands batsmen handled the English bowlers and are sure to take tips from that. Ireland will go in with one major psychological advantage over England: They have nothing to lose, and England have everything to lose if the result of the match is not a big victory for England. By having no pressure, Ireland can play more freely.
Head to Head:
The two teams have gone head to head in 3 ODIs till now, with England winning all three. None of their meetings have come at the World Cup, though.
Quotes:
"Nothing dramatic has to change, we played well in the warm-up games -- we've just got to be a bit more ruthless with the bat." - Ireland captain William Porterfield.
"We haven't played our best cricket yet and we have just tied with India, chasing 338. That has got to be a good sign." - England batsman Ian Bell.
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