‘Not sure I’ve been involved in a bigger accomplishment’ – Harry Tector hails Ireland’s 2-0 T20I series win over India

Harry Tector hails Ireland’s 2-0 T20I series win over India (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Ireland allrounder Harry Tector has placed his side’s 2-0 T20I series sweep over India as the biggest accomplishment of his international career, drawing comparisons to the most iconic wins in Irish cricket history. The hosts defended 154 to beat the reigning world champions by one run in Belfast on Sunday, June 28, ending India’s unbeaten run across 16 bilateral T20I series stretching back nearly three years.

The result gave Ireland their first-ever series win over India in any format. Playing in his 100th T20I, Tector anchored the Irish innings with 53 off 47 balls to help post 154 for 8 despite the hosts going into the series without five first-choice seamers. Jai Moondra and Matthew Hollard, who had taken five wickets between them in the first T20I, repeated the act with three apiece in the second to keep India at 153 for 9.

“Sometimes those things can be hard to measure, because when I was growing up, Ireland beat Pakistan in 2007, beat England in 2011. Like they were so, so big for the sport, but I think as an achievement for a cricket team to go out there and beat the two-time back-to-back world champions, it’s like they’re such a good team. I couldn’t speak to the games I haven’t been involved in because they were such amazing wins at a time when Irish cricket needed to do it, but certainly since I’ve been involved I’m not sure I’ve been involved in a bigger accomplishment,” Tector said on Cricinfo.

What made Ireland’s bowling attack special against India?

Ireland’s three-seam attack had just one match of experience between them going into the series, but Tector credited their clarity of execution as the key to the result.

“I sat there in the change room [thinking] the three guys [fast bowlers], Liam McCarthy had only played one game before. So we went into the series with one match between three bowlers. Just the clarity they bowled with… We went in with a simple plan once we saw the first innings on Friday, and then batting on the surface today it felt similar so the plan didn’t change that much, but you still have to execute against some really good batters. Jai, Matt, Liam today was excellent and probably went under the radar, but I reckon he went it under six an over. I think they’ve certainly stuck their hand up. That’s what we want to see: guys come in, put in performances and make it difficult for the selectors, and they’ve done that in buckets today,” Tector added.

The weekend on a whole is just huge: Harry Tector

Tector also reflected on the significance of the wider weekend for Irish cricket, with the Ireland women’s team having beaten the West Indies at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup the previous day.

“What the women achieved yesterday was huge and I think it’s a big monkey off their back. I think it was, it was a long time coming. They’ve been playing really well for a really long time and I obviously date Gaby [Lewis, the captain], so like I’m quite intimate in the whole, experience of it, I guess, but, I think she would probably think that they were disappointed to not win more than once because I think they went in with a lot of confidence, so I was delighted to see them get over the line,” Tector said.

The right-hander also highlighted the rarity of playing at home, noting that most of his 100 T20I caps have come away from Ireland.

“I think Orla [Prendergast] is world class. She’s one of the best allrounders in the world. The way she’s played at this World Cup has certainly shown that. The weekend on a whole is just huge. You know, you ride that wave of momentum of reporting, and hopefully get onto the front or back pages of major newspapers here would be a big achievement because sometimes you win games and it doesn’t even get reported on. This weekend, the momentum we have is brilliant, and hopefully it does a lot for us going forward in terms of getting more games in our summer and playing in front of home crowds. That’s what you want to do as an Irish cricketer. I got my 100th cap today, but I reckon more than half of them are away from home, certainly a good bit more than half actually, so playing at home is brilliant, and I’d love to do more,” Tector added.

India now travel to England for a five-match T20I series, with the first game scheduled for Wednesday, July 1, at the Riverside Ground in Chester-le-Street.