Ireland offer ticket deal after Australia abandonment

Ireland have offered free entry to their upcoming matches for those supporters who saw only 10.4 overs of their ODI with Australia in Belfast. Brett Lee took two wickets in his first three deliveries and a fantastic catch from Michael Clarke helped Australia further reduce Ireland to 36 for 3 before the rain returned to cause the abandonment of the one-off ODI.

Supporters will be able to gain free entry to one of Ireland's two World Cricket League matches against Afghanistan in Dublin on July 3 or 5, or for their T20 series against Bangladesh back in Belfast on July 18, 20 or 21.

There was little action against Australia but Lee, making his first appearance of the tour ahead of Australia's five-match ODI series against England, proved his form by knocking over the off stumps of both William Porterfield - for a golden duck - and Ed Joyce in a double-wicket maiden to start the match. Paul Stirling hit four fours in his 24 but fell in Pat Cummins' third over to check Ireland's mini-revival.

With little more than 10 overs bowled, the teams were forced off by a heavy downpour and, despite repeated inspections, the umpires finally called play off shortly before 4pm.

Australia's captain, Clarke, won the toss and sent Ireland in to bat after a 45-minute delay to the scheduled start. The ground had recovered well from heavy pre-match rain, allowing the match to get underway at 11.30am local time, without a reduction on the allotted 50 overs a side.

The tourists made four changes from the team that accounted for Leicestershire in their opening match of the tour, a minor muscle strain ruling out George Bailey and allowing Peter Forrest to come in. The pace attack was reshuffled entirely, Lee, Cummins and Ben Hilfenhaus for Mitchell Johnson, James Pattinson and Clint McKay.

Ireland opened up with Stirling and Porterfield at the top of the order, the same combination that gave Australia a fright the last time these two sides met in 2010, while Tim Murtagh was handed an expected debut.

Ireland 1 Paul Stirling, 2 Will Porterfield (capt), 3 Ed Joyce, 4 Niall O'Brien (wk), 5 Gary Wilson, 6 Kevin O'Brien, 7 Alex Cusack, 8 John Mooney, 9 Trent Johnston, 10 George Dockrell, 11 Tim Murtagh.

Australia 1 David Warner, 2 Matthew Wade (wk), 3 Shane Watson, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 David Hussey, 6 Peter Forrest, 7 Steve Smith, 8 Brett Lee, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Ben Hilfenhaus, 11 Xavier Doherty.