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Ireland clinch tri-series in Dubai

Dubai - They beat Scotland by 24 runs; UAE is the third team

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Ireland posted their fourth successive win, and with Scotland and UAE yet to open their account, the Irish clinched the tri-series being played at the ICC Academy in Dubai on Thursday.

But for their captain William Porterfield (6), who had an off day, the rest of Ireland's six batsmen were among the runs as they compiled 331 for 6 from 50 overs, in the bargain also achieving their joint-highest total in ODI cricket.

Opting to bat on winning the toss, Ireland were 15 for 1, but Paul Stirling and Andy Balbirnie revived the innings with some lusty hitting. Man of the match Stirling struck 74 from 88 balls after hitting 10 boundaries. Balbirnie played second fiddle with 47 from 61 balls with only four fours coming from his bat.

Their 117-run partnership boosted the team's morale and Niall O'Brien (51), Simi Singh (45), Kevin O'Brien (46) and Gary Wilson (40) capitalised on it to take the team past the 300-run mark.

Scotland tried to make a match of it with Michael Jones leading the chase after scoring 74. Calum MacLeod (59), Michael Leask (59), George Munsey (30) and Matthew Cross (33) kept the match in the balance but they ran out of overs and ultimately fell short by 24 runs.