“more cricketers in Lancashire or Yorkshire than in the whole of Ireland..”

It seems that the Pakistan cricket team, and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq in particular, are to be fined for the slow over rate in the nail-biter yesterday. That’s not as petty as it might sound, with rain threatening and the light deteriorating at the end of Ireland’s innings, it could have affected the result.. Thankfully it didn’t. And, in addition to the report Mick pointed to last night, the Observer has another good article on the “extraordinarily tense low-scoring affair” and they talked to Eddie Lewis, coach at Merrion Cricket Club – “Oh brother, what a day for brilliant Ireland”

‘It was very big 200 years ago,’ Lewis says. ‘At the beginning of the 19th century it was the main team sport and it used to be played at the end of each railway line. There would be Cork County, Galway County, Leitrim County and so on and there was even an Irish equivalent of Wisden between 1860 and 1880.’ 150 years on and they have completed their first World Cup victory.

Adds The BBC are reporting that Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer is in hospital after being found unconscious in his hotel room. The impact of the result is evident in his comments recorded in this BBC blog post. Update It’s now being reported that Bob Woolmer has died. Some Tributes to Bob Woolmer

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