MALAHIDE // Eoin Morgan has backed Michael Carberry to make it as an England opening batsman despite his disappointing one-day international debut in Tuesday's win against Ireland.
Carberry, who had already dropped two catches and conceded 12 runs in his only over with the ball, was dismissed in the fourth over for 10 to complete an unhappy day when he was consistently barracked by the huge home crowd, after his fumbles in the field.
But Morgan, the Irishman who led England to an emphatic six-wicket victory, said the 32 year old, who played one Test against Bangladesh in 2010, would be stronger for the experience.
"Debutants are on a hiding to nothing most of the time and more often than not they don't go right for you," Morgan said.
"Carbs is a very experienced cricketer who will pick himself up and we will encourage him to play with the freedom he does with Hampshire and we have a very strong belief in him as an opening batsman," added Morgan who refused to give any clues as to the likely England line-up for the first match of the one-day series against Australia at Headingley on Friday.
"It's too early to predict what we are going to do because we picked a team specifically for today's [Tuesday's] conditions, so we will re-evaluate tomorrow [on Wednesday] when we land in Manchester and move on from there," added the England captain who will keep the job for the five-match series while Alastair Cook is one of the big names who takes a break following the Ashes victory.
Kevin Pietersen, Joe Root and Jonathan Trott will all join up with the England squad after missing the trip to Ireland, while Danny Briggs and Jamie Overton are awaiting debuts after being left out of the Malahide clash.
Meanwhile Boyd Rankin, the Irishman who made his England one-day debut against his home country, seems likely to keep his place after finishing with figures of four for 46 in Ireland's 269 for seven.
"It is frustrating when a couple of Irish lads play against us and it just happens that they were their top performers," said William Porterfield, the Ireland captain.
"They want to play Test cricket as well and unfortunately Ireland can't offer them that at the minute.
"But the positive is that Ireland can produce cricketers like that and we have lads coming through who are aspiring to be like Eoin and Boyd.
"And to get 10,000 people through the gate it proves that Irish cricket is still on the rise. We have come a long way since the 2007 World Cup," added Porterfield, Ireland's top-scorer with 112.
But his innings was dwarfed by Morgan and Ravi Bopara who put on a world record fifth-wicket partnership of 226 to rescue England from 48 for four.
Both received standing ovations when their reached three figures and again at the end, Morgan with the highest of five ODI centuries, 124 not out from 106 balls with eight fours and four sixes, and Bopara with his first, 101 not out from just 75 balls with 15 boundaries, including five sixes.
For Morgan, Tuesday's innings was extra-special coming as it did on his old home ground.
"I have won a trophy here with this club and it was a fantastic feeling.
"I love this area, it is a fantastic part of Dublin. To get a victory like that and perform the way we did was very satisfying.
"Centuries at number five are few and far between. Not many people do it.
"Then Ravi has got a hundred coming in behind me at six. That is one hell of an achievement."
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