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England game is history now, says Porterfield

March 05, 2011 18:14 IST

For Ireland captain William Porterfield, the win against England is history and their only focus now is the game against India in Bangalore on Sunday.

"We have put Wednesday behind us. We are proud of our performance and we have created a bit of history then. We have to start afresh again as we have got bigger challenges ahead. We have to forget about Wednesday and take the good things forward," Porterfield said.

According to Porterfield, Ireland are unfazed by the prospect of playing in front of a vociferous home crowd that will be rooting for the Men In Blue.

"Before we started the competition, we knew that we will be playing against two host nations in the group stage. It is going to be a massive game. We played Bangladesh in Bangladesh and it would be similar.

"There were some fanatical supporters and there will be a few more in tomorrow's game. It is a special occasion playing India in India. We are looking forward to it," he said.

William PotterfieldDuring the match against Ireland which they nearly won, Ireland kept the hosts on their guard for a major part, and Porterfield said that experience should help the team against India.

"We played before a noisy crowd in Bangladesh but we were able to keep them quiet for most part of the game. We will take a lot from that experience."

Kevin O'Brien didn't get a bowl in the last match and, according to Porterfield, that gives one an idea of options they have in bowling.

"We have got so many options with the ball. Even Kevin O'Brien did not bowl an over. We have to plan our options with the ball. If we want to chase a 300 plus total as was the case in the last game, we need depth in our batting."

Was the move to not give the ball to O'Brien a tactical one or was it due to an ankle injury?

"He has been a great all-rounder for us in the last few seasons. He has bowled quite a few overs in the past. Paul Stirling came into bowl and did well in the middle overs, taking the pace off it. With so many options in bowling, some may bowl on a day and some may not bowl. I don't think Kevin was upset with that and he gave us a 100 off 50 balls."

Asked about Andre Botha, who missed out the England game due to a niggle, Porterfield said he is confident of the all-rounder returning for Sunday's match.

"It is unfortunate that Andre picked up a groin niggle just ahead of the game. We are confident that he will be fit for tomorrow's game. (Alex) Cusack came in and Gary Wilson was the extra batsman in the last game," he said.

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