England sweep Ireland 3-0 in ODI series despite batting collapse

A fine hundred from Sophia Dunkley ensured England sealed a series clean sweep in their third one-day international against Ireland at Worcester on Sunday, but not before a disappointing batting collapse.

The hosts, batting first for the first time in the series, had looked on course for a huge total after Dunkley’s and Maia Bouchier’s powerful ball‑striking up top. But the innings finished limply with the loss of their last six wickets for 31 runs, as England were bowled out for 291 in 48.5 overs.

In reply Ireland got off to a flyer thanks to their captain, Gaby Lewis, who struck the ball so forcefully out of the ground on to the concrete concourse that the umpires had to call for a replacement. But when Lewis top‑edged a bouncer from Lauren Filer out into the deep, the required run rate quickly became too much of a mountain to climb.

Charlotte Edwards, the England head coach, said: “We came into this series with the intention and the goal of beating Ireland 3-0 and we’ve done that so I’m really pleased. We’ve obviously managed to develop a few players and give some opportunities throughout, so it feels like a really positive end to the summer.”

Edwards also seemed satisfied with the results of her experiment involving Alice Capsey as keeper. Capsey added two stumpings on Sunday to her glovework highlights reel – the second a very decent effort standing up to a Ryana MacDonald-Gay bouncer, as Ireland subsided to 177 all out.

“The idea of this was to see where she’s at,” Edwards said. “There’s a real chance [for her to keep] in T20 cricket. We want competition for places and she’s certainly put her hand up in that department.”

Nevertheless, there remains something of a winter headache for Edwards as she tries to figure out how to turn this new-look side into an Ashes-winning side.

Neither of England’s two young picks – the 21-year-old left-hander Jodi Grewcock and the 19-year-old Tilly Corteen-Coleman – have yet made a decisive contribution. Grewcock, given a run in the No 3 role this series, contributed 35 runs on Sunday but also faced 26 balls before striking her first boundary. The left-arm spinner Corteen-Coleman finally extracted some turn from the Worcester pitch, outwitting Alice Tector and dislodging the stumps of Louise Little, but she remains well behind Sophie Ecclestone and Linsey Smith in the pecking order.

Earlier, Lewis had called correctly at the toss while she also broke some surprising news: the retirement of the all-rounder Arlene Kelly from international cricket. Kelly, who grew up in New Zealand, was playing domestic cricket in Ireland in 2022 when she received a shock call-up from then coach Ed Joyce: since then, she has represented her adopted nation 110 times and taken 136 wickets. She has now decided the time is right to return to New Zealand.

Handed the new ball in her final ODI, Kelly added a single wicket to her collection – MacDonald-Gay holing out to long-on in the 48th over. Instead, it was the leg-spinner Cara Murray who had a day to remember, finishing with four for 56.

Grewcock plonked a return catch back to the leg-spinner, Freya Kemp and Mady Villiers were caught in the deep, and Murray also turned one past the bat of Charlie Dean and took her edge.

Dunkley’s second ODI hundred – her first since 2022 – proved England’s salvation. The right-hander missed the early summer ODIs against New Zealand to manage her workload but this series has proved her mettle as an ODI opener, muscling her way to 73 in the first match and showcasing her 360-degree ability here with powerful punches down the ground and some nifty scoops behind square.

England can now rest and regroup before a busy February which will involve a bilateral series against Sri Lanka and the Champions Trophy tournament in India.