In the T20 World Cup openers, Australia triumphs over Ireland.

Well there you have it, a nice gentle opening for Australia at this T20 World Cup. After the showing in Pakistan and the ever-growing injury list, it felt like the Aussies needed a comfy win tonight to settle the nerves a little.

Thanks for your company tonight, and be sure to return to the blog on Friday when the Australians continue their T20 World Cup quest against Zimbabwe. Until then, goodnight.

The Aussies sit on top of Group B after the first round of matches, and have three more pool games to come. The top two in every group progresses to the Super 8s.

Australia plays Zimbabwe on Friday, Sri Lanka on Monday and then Oman next Friday to round out the group stage.

Tonight’s stand-in skipper is relaxed and plenty happy after a first-up win:

“It’s all about problem solving and adapting on the go. We want to keep that intent, keep being an aggressive team. And there are different ways to do that, we kept it up with our ones and twos out there.

“It would be nice to get a couple more fit in the next couple of ways, and we’re trending that way. You’re not going to win the World Cup right now, but we’re hoping to get a few boys purring by the business end of it.”

And fair enough too, his first two overs effectively won Australia the game.

He finished with figures of 4-12 from 3.15 overs, which is his best ever return in T20Is.

Comfortable, comprehensive, confident, whatever you want to call it. Australia did a very professional job of Ireland out there today, handling what was a bit of a tricky pitch to set a strong target before blowing the Irish away with the ball.

Josh Inglis batted well at the top of the order but the partnership between Matt Renshaw and Marcus Stoinis was critical. It wasn’t at all flashy but it suited the conditions perfectly, and put Australia in a position that was never likely to be threatened.

Then Nathan Ellis came in, took three wickets in two overs, watched as Ireland’s captain retired hurt after one ball and pretty much ended the game there and then. Adam Zampa did the damage in the middle overs but the game was well and truly done by then anyway.

The Aussies are up and running.

Big slog across the line, top edged down to Green on the boundary and that will be that for Australia. A comprehensive win.

He deserves a crack at one more wicket, for it was his opening spell which blew Ireland out of this match.

The sting has very much gone out of the match as a few singles are ticked off through this over.

SHOUT! Matthew Humphreys, the new man in, falls over and misses one down the leg side. But did he glove it? I don’t think so. They’ll review it anyway.

Nothing at all on UltraEdge, not out it remains.

Humphreys takes a single to midwicket as the over comes to an end.

Make that 4-22 for Adam Zampa, who will be eyeing off a five-wicket-haul now. Not sure if Adair picked the wrongun, but it didn’t matter even if he did. A big top edge on the pull shot is easily caught in the deep by Connolly.

One more to get for Australia.

Barry McCarthy is the new batter, and he drives the first one down the ground for a single.

Great comeback from Zampa, who knew Dockrell was going to go again down the ground. Fuller, wider, slower and with more flight, Dockrell ran straight past it.

Last set here for Zampa.

SIX! Dockrell takes him on down the ground and wins. What a shot that is.

FOUR! Adair moves to the leg side and whacks Connolly through the off side, up and over cover for four.

Ones and twos tick over easily off Connolly’s bowling this over, smart batting.

FOUR MORE! Classy from Adair, who hung back and cut that delicately through backward point for four.

Similar shot earns him two runs that time. Good over for Ireland, 14 from it.

So Australia probably only needs three more wickets thanks to Paul Stirling’s injury. Ireland is almost certainly not going to get these runs, so may be just batting out time.

Mark Adair is in, and cutting away for a single. Dockrell defends the final ball of a good Zampa over.

Sounded like Ducker hit that one pretty well, but it went straight up really. It sat up in the wind and allowed Cooper Connolly time to get around and settle under the high ball.

Decent knock of 24 from 27 from Tucker. Time for a drink.

He’s still got two overs left to bowl. Driven away by Tucker for one to start the over, and then clipped to square leg by Dockrell from the next ball.

Ireland needs 103 runs from 48 balls. I don’t see it personally, but you never know.

SIX! Kuhnemann drops short and is cracked over square leg for six by Dockrell.

Was a good over aside from that long hop which went the journey. Seven overs, Kuhnemann finishes with figures of 1-29.

Australia has been happy to keep pace on the ball, where Ireland cycled through spinners almost exclusively through these middle overs.

NEARLY! Tough to call that a drop for Stoinis as he did everything he could. He timed his leap and got a finger to it above his head at mid-off, but that was all he could manage. Two runs.

FOUR! Loose down the leg side from Bartlett, helped on its way by Dockrell to fine leg for four.

Glenn Maxwell has hurt himself a little in stopping a boundary right on the rope and has run off the field for treatment. Not sure what the issue is but we’ll keep an eye on that.

Ten runs from the over.

The main man has the ball again, nudging 140kph with his first ball which hits Tucker in the box.

Short and pulled away by Tucker, and they’ll get back for two. Things have settled down a little for Ireland now and the runs are flowing to a certain extent.

I mean, I say the runs are flowing but there were only four from that Ellis over. At least the wickets have stopped, more to the point.

He starts with a full toss but Dockrell can’t get it away properly. Only a single.

FOUR MORE! Another full toss, or at least it was made that way by Tucker’s footwork. Smacked through cover for four.

Well played down the ground by Tucker, two more.

Now driven through the covers by Tucker for one more, and that will end the over. Eight from it.