Ireland captain: Pretty special thing to beat the world champions at home

Tucker himself was instrumental in he victory, scoring 50 from 36 balls in a total of 182-9 before bowling the tourists out for just 148 to 1-0 in the two-match series.

The bowling effort was especially pleasing as the Irish had seamers making their debut,  Jai Moondra and Matt Hollard, and both picked up vital wickets as the T20 World Cup champions wilted under pressure.

"It's pretty special thing to beat the world champions at home," Tucker said after the game. "(It is the) first game of the season, T20 cricket, but credit is due to the lads.

"I think we had two debutantes there who put in absolutely outstanding performances. To all the work that goes on behind the scenes, Cricket Ireland, everyone's very dedicated, and I think that's why we like to try and bring these results and support everyone.

"I think we scrapped through that game. We had some tough periods in it, but we stayed in it and were diligent and we worked hard. We were lucky to get the reward in the end."

The second and final T20I of the series takes place in Belfast on Sunday.

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