England 21 Ireland 42 Twickenham has so often been a graveyard for Ireland teams, but in time, we might well look back on this remarkable bonus point victory as the rebirth of Andy Farrell's side. With half an hour gone here, Ireland were 22-0 to the good, and as The Fields of Athenry rang around the stadium, the large travelling support were in dreamland. So too were the Ireland players. England, meanwhile, were shell-shocked.
Enter Phil Salt, ready to headline once again. The opener followed his 141 against South Africa last Friday with 89 off 46 balls as England secured victory in the first of three Twenty20 internationals, with 14 balls to spare. Ireland's bowling effort fell way short of their impressive work in the first half, when Harry Tector and Lorcan Tucker combined for a third-wicket partnership of 128 off 11.2 overs, the former top-scoring with an unbeaten 61 off 36 balls.