DUBLINER KEVIN O’BRIEN blazed the fastest century in the history of the Cricket World Cup earlier as he propelled Ireland to an unlikely victory over England in Bangalore.
The all-rounder smashed 113 off 63 balls as Ireland recovered from 111-5 to overhaul their target of 328 with five balls to spare and three wickets in hand. And O’Brien admitted afterwards it may take him a while to appreciate what happened.
“It’s pretty amazing. It still hasn’t really sunk in. When it does tomorrow, I’m sure it’ll put a big smile on my face,” he told RTÉ’s Drivetime.
It means a huge amount to us here, and hopefully to millions at home. To be honest, I took a chance.
“We could have pottered around and got 250 but I wanted to go down with a fight. We took a few chances, England dropped a few chances and we made them pay.
“I didn’t know that at the time. I had slight feeling I might be up there, but I didn’t know I’d be the quickest. The boys only told me when I came off,” he added.
And The Railway Union man admitted that the name-making ton was the best of his life. Speaking to Sky Sports in the wake of England’s humiliation, he added: “It’s obviously the best innings I’ll ever play and obviously a great day for the Irish cricketing public.”
“Cusey [Alex Cusack] stayed with me. It was my fault he got run out, but I just tried to put it out of my mind as quick as I can. I knew I had to hang on in there till the end of the match if I could.
I just kept chancing my arm and things came off for me. It’s the best innings of my life. It was our day”
“I just decided to be as positive as I could. The wicket was flat and the ground was small. We attacked and it came off. It truly was a team effort.”
As the crowds slowly filtered out of the stadium, commentators reflected that bars would be lenient despite strict licensing laws. The centurion was not so optimistic:
“I don’t think there’ll be any legendary Irish celebrations. The bars close at 11, so we’ll have to settle for a few quiet beers in our room,” he added. That remains to be seen.
