Afghanistan beat Ireland in World Twenty20 qualifier
ICC World Twenty20 qualifier, Dubai: Afghanistan 139-8 (20 ovs) beat Ireland 126 (19.2 ovs) by 13 runs Match scorecard
William Porterfield was unhappy with his team's display
Ireland hopes of progressing to this year's ICC World Twenty20 suffered a blow as they lost their opening qualifier against Afghanistan.
The Afghans continued their recent dominance over the Irish by clinching a 12-run win in Dubai on Tuesday.
The Irish restricted Afghanistan to 138-9, but after a decent start Phil Simmons' side collapsed to 126 all out.
William Porterfield (35) and Paul Stirling (21) had Ireland 52-1 after 6.3 overs before the wheels came off.
Only Trent Johnston (18) and Alex Cusack also managed to make it into double figures, while Ireland lost their last three wickets within four deliveries.
Captain Porterfield acknowledged that the Irish batting performance had not "been good enough", while they also dropped six catches in the field.
"It is disappointing if you can't chase seven runs an over and are bowled out in 20 overs," said Porterfield.
"There is no doubt that we didn't play well but let's not forget that Afghanistan also played well.
"The equation for us is pretty simple and straight now.
"We need to win the remaining two matches to progress to the Super Four stage and get our ambitions back on track."
The Irish, who played in last year's World Twenty20 in England, play the USA and Scotland in their remaining opening group games.
Afghanistan, a rising cricketing force among the ICC's associate members, defeated Ireland in last year's World Cup qualifiers, even though the Irish went on to win that tournament.
The Afghans then accounted for Ireland in an Intercontinental Cup game in Sri Lanka last month.
The two finalists from this current competition will qualify for the ICC World Twenty20 proper in April and May, in the West Indies - the scene of Irish cricket's finest hour in 2007 as they qualified for the Super Eight phase of the World Cup.
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