Johnston Delighted with Bowling Unit as Ireland Once Again Provide White Knuckle Ride Finish Against Strong UAE Side

Ireland's Talisman Trent Johnston was full of praise for his bowling colleagues today, with a special mention for Max Sorenson who he praised for his excellent four overs into a strong breeze.

In posting a total that was competitive but short of what was desired, Ireland ensured that yet again they gave their supporters in the ground and following on the website another white knuckle ride of a finish.

But you don't come out on top of finishes like this as often as Ireland do by being lucky. The experience and guile of a well drilled side also counts for plenty in a tight finish.

Barry Chambers: Trent another close game, but a good result?

Trent Johnston: Yeah a good result. I suppose if you look at the total we got, we were probably a bit below what we probably should have got. I think that we need to probably have a look and knock the ball around a little bit more in those middle overs, on this wicket, and use the size of these fields, get a lot more twos.

I think our kick along in our innings was when Kev hit that six, it sort of sparked the guys a little bit, and they certainly worked the ball around a lot better after that. I don't think these wickets at this particular time are to stand up and crash the ball for boundaries. We've got to work a little bit more like they did, probably in their middle overs. They certainly set a pretty good foundation, but we just kept taking wickets, and building pressure, and subsequently got the two points.

Barry Chambers: Yeah and that last over, you went for Yorkers?

Trent Johnston: Yeah I've been hitting my Yorkers quite well throughout training, and in the last couple of games, so I wasn't going to go away from that. I knew what I had to do, and it was obviously very hard hitting back into that breeze, so if I got it slightly wrong, that it's a pretty good short to get it over the guys there.

So just protect the boundaries square of the wicket, and just try and bowl as straight as I can, and you know if they're moving around the crease, well that's their decision, I'm just going to try and hit the base of the stumps if I can.

Barry Chambers: Was it difficult bowling there, maybe ok from your end, because there was such a strong breeze, but for the other guys?

Trent Johnston: A great spell of bowling from Max Sorenson. I think he probably won us the game. I don't know how I got a point (in the MOM adjudications), if that's the way they're going to adjudicate on it, because his four overs into that breeze were outstanding. He may have went for a couple in that last over, but that's always going to be the case in Twenty20 cricket, when they need six, seven, eight runs an over.

But he ran in, hit the deck back of a length, and that's what we spoke about going out there. We didn't want to be too full for them to get underneath it, especially at this end. So he really hit the splice of the bat there today, you know he was outstanding.

Barry Chambers: Yes and three wins out of three, probably played the top three teams, you're in a great position now, and I'm sure you'll be glad of a few days rest?

Trent Johnston: Certainly be glad of a few days rest. If you see me out of my room in the next two days, tell me to get back there. No it's good like, I suppose we've been speaking about it, we certainly haven't been at our best. I think we've probably got to go and have a look about what we're doing with our batting. Because I think we're leaving twenty, thirty runs out there. You know our bowling, up until this game has probably been ok. I thought we bowled really well today. Good to see Stirlo back bowling a few overs for us.

Barry Chambers: An added bonus for Ireland Paul Stirling's four overs?

Trent Johnston: Yeah exactly, it makes a hell of a difference there. You know look it if we come back and play on this ground again, we might look to play another spinner, I think. You know they bowled particularly well, their spinners just bowled straight, back of a length. And like the boys have said, it's hard to hit boundary balls. And we've probably got to be a bit smarter at the crease and look to work those into these big outfields and get those twos.