Ireland chased down 329 runs with one ball to spare to defeat England by seven wickets in third one-day international at the Ageas Bowl on Tuesday (August 4).
Paul Stirling hit a strokeful 142 off 128 balls and captain Andrew Balbirnie scored 113 off 112 to help Ireland register a stunning win. The duo shared a stand of 214 for the second wicket to lay the foundation for a historic win.
Stirling was dismissed with 65 needed and Balbirnie returned to the pavilion 15 runs later, but Ireland did not panic and were ably guided by Kevin O'Brien to secure the memorable win. England, however, won the series 2-1.
O'Brien and Harry Tector, who put on an unbroken 50, hit eight runs needed of the last over as Ireland registered their second win over England in ODIs.
Earlier, England skipper Eoin Morgan hit 106 runs off 84 balls to have put the hosts on course for victory.
Morgan and Banton, who scored 58, added 146 but both of them were dismissed in quick succession and England to failed to capitalise on a solid foundation laid down by Morgan and Banton.
It was Ireland's highest successful chase in ODIs. It may be recalled that in 2011 World Cup, Ireland had defeated England by chasing down the same score.
"Full credit to Ireland - they outplayed us today. We had an average day and stuttered throughout. It was in and around a par score but the wicket got better and Ireland played better than they had in the last two games," Morgan said after the match.
Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie said, "I feel ecstatic. We didn't play our best cricket in the first two games but to put in that performance, particularly with the bat, gives us confidence that we can compete with the best whenever those fixtures come about. It's very satisfying to get the win."
