Ireland Celebrate Landmark Victory
Ireland head coach Lloyd Tennant believes the team’s first-ever ICC Women’s T20 World Cup victory can become a major turning point for women’s cricket in the country and will have a lasting impact.
Ireland defeated West Indies by six wickets in Bristol to finally end their long wait for a win at the tournament. The breakthrough came in their 22nd attempt across five editions and capped a memorable week for Irish cricket, coming shortly after the men’s team recorded their first-ever T20I victory over India.
The women’s victory was built around a superb all-round performance from Orla Prendergast, who took 1/29 with the ball before scoring a match-winning 63 from 44 deliveries.
Tennant Praises Team’s Growth
Tennant said the result was a reward for the squad’s hard work, patience and willingness to learn from challenges.
“It’s been a great learning experience,” Tennant said after the win.
“We’ve played well at times and come the wrong end of a result, and we haven’t performed to our best at other times. So it was lovely today to get everything together and get across the line.
“We executed perfectly almost today. But we always knew that if we could get the game together, if we could bat and bowl well together, then we’d get that win.”
Tennant also highlighted Ireland’s improvement in the field, an area where the team had previously faced criticism.
“The other thing that people have probably criticized the side for – our field in the past has not been great, but we’ve been a unit out in the middle and we’ve looked much better in the field.”
Young Squad Gains Belief
The Ireland coach stressed that the squad is still young, with an average age of just 23, and said patience will be important as the players continue developing.
“Everyone wants to grow a bit quicker, but I think with the age of the squad, we have to have some patience,” Tennant said. “We don’t play in these competitions every day, so these are massive learning circles for us, and we’ll take a lot from it.”
He believes the win can give the players genuine confidence that they can compete with stronger teams.
“I think that to get the win is massive, it’s a great day and all that, but I think on a bigger scale, the girls have got belief that, if we can continue to grow – and grow quick enough – and develop as a team, where can we get to? How many great days like this can we have? So it’s given us a lot of belief that we can compete with the best teams.”
Boost for Cricket in Ireland
Tennant also hopes the success of both national teams can help cricket attract more attention across Ireland.
“I think it will be huge, it’ll get a lot of press, it’ll be great for women’s cricket,” he said. “The men winning yesterday was that will go worldwide, won’t it? So hopefully it’s a big occasion for us.
“I’m hoping more and more people sit and put the telly on and watch it. If we get that, even if people come and support or they want to get involved in cricket clubs, that’s growing the game for us.”
Focus Turns to ODI Series
Ireland will now have five days off before preparing for a three-match ODI series against West Indies, starting on July 10, 2026, in Bready, Northern Ireland.
Tennant admitted the switch from T20 cricket to the 50-over format will be challenging but believes Ireland can carry the confidence from their historic win into the series.
“We’ve played so much T20 leading up, I think a 50-over game is going to feel long, the first one,” he said. “I’m hoping that the things we’ve done, we can just extend so that we will come out on the right side of a couple of results.
“We know it’s going to be tough. Obviously West Indies are a good side, and in general, I suppose they’re going to be expected to beat us. But we think if we get things right, we can compete and push them.”
