Win or lose in Hobart it’s highly unlikely that the first match in Ireland’s T20 World Cup campaign will be as thrilling or controversial as the last time they played Zimbabwe at the Bellerive Oval in 2015.
Andy Balbirnie made his first major contribution for Ireland with 97 and Ed Joyce notched a century (112) in a total of 331-8, but it was a disputed incident toward the end of the Zimbabwe chase that caused uproar.
All-rounder Sean Williams appeared to be taking the African side to victory in the 50-overs World Cup clash when he was caught on the boundary by John Mooney for 96, off the bowling of Kevin O’Brien. Or was he?
Mooney took the catch on the run perilously close to the boundary and repeated replays failed to show decisively whether at full pelt the side of his boot had brushed the rope, which didn’t move.
Williams accepted the fielder’s word that it hadn’t and left the field but a vindictive Zimbabwean sports reporter had different ideas and filed a hit piece referencing Mooney’s public battles with alcohol and depression.
His headline back home screamed “Alcoholic dumps Zim out of World Cup”, spurring an embarrassed Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor to apologise to the combative all-rounder.
After the incident Zimbabwe continued to threaten not only victory, but also Ireland’s record World Cup chase of 327 to beat England four years earlier, until ecstatic skipper William Porterfield held the winning catch off the third ball of the final over.
The climax was so gripping it was reported that on the other side of the world Gerry Adams’s keynote speech to the annual Ard Fheis had to be delayed because a significant number of Sinn Féin delegates were gathered around TV sets watching.
Mooney played his last game for Ireland later that year but, now aged 40, he is still prominent in domestic cricket with North County, helping the Fingal club win the National Cup last season, and recently represented the Rest of the World legends in a veterans T20 tournament in India.
Meanwhile, Namibia caused the first shock of 2022 by beating recent Asia Cup winners Sri Lanka by 55 runs as the tournament got underway in Geelong, Victoria.
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