Finch fitness sweat but he helps Aussies sink Ireland
AUSTRALIA improved their prospects of reaching the T20 World Cup semi-finals but victory over Ireland came at a cost with injuries to Aaron Finch, Tim David and Marcus Stoinis. Finch returned to form by clubbing three sixes and five fours in his 44-ball 63, the linchpin of his side’s 179 for five, but the Australia captain went off in Ireland’s reply with a hamstring problem. While Australia wrapped up a 42-run win after Ireland were bowled out for 137 in 18.1 overs, there will be concerns about the severity of Finch’s injury and whether it has any impact on his tournament. He said at the presentation ceremony: ‘I’ve had a bit of a hammy twinge, I don’t feel too bad at the moment but generally overnight it can stiffen up a bit. I will have a scan (on Tuesday).’ If that were not bad enough for the hosts and defending champions, David did not field due to a similar issue to Finch while Stoinis, who has a history of side complaints, went off after bowling one over. Australia, though, moved level on points with New Zealand at the top of their Super 12s group and took a sizeable wedge out of the net run-rate deficit they had accrued after their defeat to the Kiwis. It could have been better for Australia after Ireland lost five wickets in 13 balls to slump from 18 without loss to 25 for five but Lorcan Tucker’s unbeaten 71 off 48 balls limited the damage. England will therefore leapfrog Australia into second place — only the top-two teams in each group progress to the semi-finals — if Jos Buttler’s side overcome New Zealand at the Gabba today.