On Tuesday, captain Jos Buttler cautioned his highly anticipated England team that if they underrate Ireland at the Twenty20 World Cup, they run the chance of being “damaged.”
With excellent bowling and fielding, England defeated Afghanistan by five wickets on Saturday in Perth to begin their title defense.
Sam Curran, the first England bowler to claim five wickets in a T20I, was the highlight with a stunning 5-10.
Ireland, who advanced past the first round, was defeated by Sri Lanka in Hobart by nine wickets.
Even though Ireland and England are rated 12 and 2 respectively in the world, there will be no room for complacency because only the top two teams from each group of six teams advance to the semi-finals.
“We give them great respect, we expect a really tough game,” Buttler said ahead of Wednesday’s clash at Melbourne Cricket Ground.
“We’ll prepare well, we’ll try and turn up on the day and assess conditions, see what’s in front of us, try and use our talent as best we can on the day to put pressure on them, and try and win the game.”
There may be a temptation to rest players or rotate bowlers with Group 1 games remaining against the reigning champions Australia, the defeated finalists from the previous year, New Zealand, and the 2014 champions Sri Lanka.
Buttler insisted it was crucial to field the finest team possible and steer clear of any errors.
