Under clear blue skies and the soft warmth of early autumn at Malahide, England overpowered Ireland on Wednesday to claim a four-wicket win in their first bilateral T20I meeting.

The scenic surroundings barely masked the severe intensity with which England openers, Phil Salt and Jos Buttler, launched into Ireland’s bowlers from the onset, scuttling to 84 by the end of the powerplay.

Ireland’s total of 196/3, built on the back of a solid batting display, gave the home side a competitive score to defend, but England’s response was swift and ruthless. Salt, fresh from his record-breaking 141 from late last week, struck with both power and precision, while Buttler’s fluent strokeplay complemented the onslaught.

Despite the pressure, Ireland found brief moments of control. Spinner Matthew Humphreys, undeterred by the carnage of Salt and Buttler deceived the latter with a courageous change of pace. The delivery dipped just short of where Buttler anticipated as mistimed his shot that was safely caught by Curtis Campher at midwicket. It was Ireland’s most encouraging moment in the Powerplay, though England’s momentum rarely faltered.

Salt’s dominance continued as he raced to his 50 off just 20 balls, seamlessly blending aggression with timing. Becoming England’s youngest-ever international captain, Jacob Bethell unleashed fearless strokeplay too, before Sam Curran chipped in with quick runs, keeping England firmly ahead.

Even as Ireland’s bowlers briefly stemmed the flow with tidy overs as Gareth Delany, marking his 100th appearance, celebrated with an early wicket of Rehan Ahmed. Salt and Curran’s ability to pick gaps and punish marginally poor deliveries ensured the chase remained on course.

Both the set batters, Salt and Curran, fell in the 16th over of the innings, however, the visitors only required 16 runs in 24 deliveries to seal the game. With plenty of firepower in England’s line up it took only 10 more deliveries as Jamie Overton slammed a full toss to long-on boundary finishing the contest in the golden hues of the afternoon sun fading into the evening.

For Ireland there were positives to hold onto despite the outcome. A solid start from Paul Stirling and Ross Adair, combined with a remarkable 123-run partnership between Lorcan Tucker and Harry Tector, helped them post a competitive total. Though facing powerful hitting, their bowlers showed resilience in bursts. The electric atmosphere and Ireland's intermittent resolve ensured this historic opening match, despite the ranking disparity, was not entirely one-sided.

Given the quick turnaround, Ireland might be tempted to debut the left-handed Ben Calitz in Friday's 2nd T20I to match their opponents' firepower.