There are commentators with twenty years experience that haven't enjoyed a series as close as the one I covered in Dublin last week. A nail-biting tie followed by another thrillingly close encounter resulted in Pakistan claiming the RSA Insurance series. But the real winners were undoubtedly Ireland, who added Misbah Ul Haq to the growing list of advocates for their elevation to full member status. Centuries by Paul Stirling and Ed Joyce, a world class spell of spin bowling by George Dockrell and the resurgent form of man of the series Kevin O'Brien were watched by 300,000 people across 150 countries.
This will undoubtedly raise the profile of Ireland cricket further and result in a legion of fans adopting Ireland as their second team. Perhaps the biggest compliment to the team is that they are no longer spoken of as the underdog when full members visit. That term was not used once by any of the commentary team.
The atmosphere at Clontarf was electric, the charming ground packed to the rafters with passionate and vocal support for both teams. My commentary box resembled one of the lodges in the Ewok village in Return of the Jedi and Thursday's weather saw horizontal hail bombard John Kenny and me as we looked to describe the action before us. Though frustrating the rain delays in that first game enabled us to discuss important development issues such as the High Performance Programme, the drive to increase participation levels to 50,000, the launch of the Inter Provincial series and Ireland's bid for full member status. Richard Done of the ICC spoke eloquently and Kenny, Jon Coates, Nick Royle and Bryan MacNeice provided a local perspective.
Not that it was all serious, there were plenty of light hearted moments too. Amongst the topics were the Mr Men series, David Lloyd's dislike of red trousers (I was sporting a pair) and William Portferfield's fantasy slip cordon, that included Kerry Katona at 3rd slip! On Sunday's game, Cecilia Joyce joined me in the commentary box to discuss the development of women's cricket, both in Ireland the world. This provided a fascinating insight and Cecilia beamed a smile when we reported that her team had defeated Cheshire in the English championship. Fellow international Andrew Poyntor was excited to make his commentary debut at his home club and led viewers through the action with a player's eye for technical detail.
A key element of Quipu coverage is interaction with fans and tweets flooded in as fans tuned in across the world. It was humbling to reflect that this green corner of Ireland was a focal point for the Irish diaspora across the world. Some offered predictions, others reflections and all brought colour and context to the matches. Pakistani fans also tuned in from far flung corners of the globe, eager to see how their team was shaping up prior to the Champions Trophy in England.
Some felt Thursday's performance, where they failed to remove of stem the flow of runs from Kevin O'Brien's blade, was lethargic. We were all surprised that the world's best spinner went wicketless and conceded over 70 runs. But it was testament to the fearless approach of Ireland and they had every reason to be confident, afterall they had defeated Pakistan before.
There was a period in the second game when Kamran Akmal was in full flow that I felt the commentary box may be in the firing line. Indeed I checked with Cecilia that she had a safe pair of hands for that very eventuality. We didn't have a window, so local glaziers could put the phone on mute and enjoy the game. With Pakistan four down and struggling it looked like Ireland were on course for another famous victory. The Pakistan fans in the stand to our left were silent, bemused, confused. While the Blarney army were in full voice and creating a carnival atmosphere.
But in the best series the momentum ebbs and flows, and make no mistake this will be remembered as one of the closest series in the modern era, and Pakistan refused to wilt under the pressure exerted by a brilliant opening spell by Johnston and Murtagh. Akmal and Wahab Riaz took the sting out of the attack and then launched one of their own with the ball dispatched to all parts in the final stages. Bryan MacNeice, sat to my right, had his head in his hands as Tim Murtagh was taken apart to bring the run rate down from 10 an over to 5. Pakistan flags flew once more and Ireland players left the field wondering just how a victory had slipped through their fingers.
One of my priorities as a writer is to ensure that players at associate and affiliate level are assessed and scrutinised as closely as their full member counterparts. Part of this is ensuring that milestones are acknowledged. In the first game Kevin O'Brien took his fiftieth ODI wicket and Joyce passed 1000 ODI runs in the second. Hafeez took his 100th wicket and his 122 not out was the highest ODI score on the ground. Trent Johnston became the 5th highest associate wicket taker in ODIs.
I hope that this analysis was appreciated by viewers, though my eye for stats is, I acknowledge, perhaps too nerdy for some. But whereas few beyond the emerald isle followed the career of Jason Molins or CricketEurope founder John Elder, the players in the current team have a global profile. This was shown when Jon Coates revealed on air that Kevin O'Brien had been accepted into the draft for the Caribbean Super League, where he will join Ricky Ponting amongst others. Career stats are followed very closely, so are worthy of a mention.
Although Quipu do not have the same number of cameras or range of technological gizmos as Sky, we captured some memorable moments. Not least of which was a stunning catch by Kevin O'Brien that caused me to come over all flustered, Blowers like, in the commentary box. For a man who has faced critics for fitness levels at times in his career it was an act of breathtaking athleticism. Even the rain breaks saw some action, with the high winds counteracting gravity and causing ground-staff to kite surf. And we also acknowledged the ingenuity of the gentleman to our left who used a chair as a hat when the rains came.
Cricket Ireland and the ICC were very supportive throughout the series and CricketEurope's own Barry Chambers ran round the boundary to kindly offered me a plate of Lasagne just when my energy levels were flat-lining. He is everywhere and a vital cog in Ireland cricket. Thanks too to Jeff Crowe, the match referee, who was kind, accommodating and genial as we shot the toss and interviewed the captains. It was great to reflect on the game with doyens of Irish cricket like Ger Siggins and Emmet Riordan. They are well used to expecting the unexpected from Ireland but even they hadn't predicted the series would be so tightly contested.
It was a tiring few days and the commentary box became something of a home from home. In hindsight I should have installed a kettle. But what an honour to commentate on a series that will be remembered for a long, long time. Several thousand people will boast 'I was there' to their children and grandchildren and thanks to Cricket Ireland several hundred thousand can boast that they watched the drama unfold too, however far from Dublin they were.
My thanks to the Quipu team who worked tirelessly, especially our producer Jack McGill who flew back to Glasgow between matches to witness the birth of his son. Emotional and proud as punch he valiantly returned to lead us through the second match. We left Ireland with fond memories, a sense of a job well done but a steely determination to continue to develop and improve coverage and continue to play a pivotal role of bringing cricket below test level to a wider audience as part of the ICC's commitment to development of the global game. Thanks for your support and feedback. And I very much look forward to the next opportunity to don the off-white blazer and seize the microphone.