Cricket Ireland made significant announcements on Tuesday, unveiling three men’s T20 International squads under the leadership of batter Paul Stirling. These squads are set to compete in various upcoming tournaments, including a three-match series against Pakistan in Dublin, the Tri-Series with Netherlands and Scotland in Voorburg, and the prestigious ICC Men’s T20 World Cup scheduled to commence next month in the West Indies and USA.
The three squads consist of an identical set of 14 players, with the inclusion of Josh Little as the 15th member for the T20 World Cup. Little, who is currently showcasing his talent in the Indian Premier League with the Gujarat Titans, is set to bolster Ireland’s squad for the global event.
Ireland Men are currently ranked 11th in the world in T20Is.
Heinrich Malan, Ireland Men’s Head Coach, said: “We have an intensive block of T20 cricket coming up this month ahead of the T20 World Cup – we have seven games in 15 days as preparation for the tournament. We will not be treating those seven games as warmups, though, we’ll be aiming to win as many of those games as possible.”
“The T20 format is fast-paced, think-on-your-feet style of cricket. To find a way to win – given the often frenetic and evolving game going on around you – is a skill you can truly only ever learn and develop on the field of play.”
“The squad is one that we have gradually developed and tested out over the last 18 or so months – the skill sets we need to cover are there, albeit we have allowed Josh [Little] to continue in the IPL until his side end their campaign, so he will likely join us ahead of the big tournament.”
“We are now entering the final stretch before the T20 World Cup begins, it will be a challenging couple of weeks, but we are ready to tackle whatever is thrown at us,” he concluded the point.
THE FIXTURE SCHEDULE(All times shown are local to the venue)
*Pakistan T20I Series
10 May 2024: Ireland v Pakistan (T20I; Clontarf; start 3 pm)12 May 2024: Ireland v Pakistan (T20I; Clontarf; start 3 pm)14 May 2024: Ireland v Pakistan (T20I; Clontarf; start 3 pm)
*Tri-Series in Netherlands
19 May 2024: Ireland v Netherlands (T20I; Voorburg; start 4pm)20 May 2024: Ireland v Scotland (T20I; Voorburg; start 5 pm)23 May 2024: Ireland v Scotland (T20I; Voorburg; start 11 am)24 May 2024: Ireland v Netherlands (T20I; Voorburg; start 11am)
*T20 World Cup in US/Caribbean
31 May 2024: Ireland v Sri Lanka (Warm-up; Florida)5 June 2024: Ireland v India (T20I; New York; start 10.30am)7 June 2024: Ireland v Canada (T20I; New York; start 10.30am)14 June 2024: Ireland v USA (T20I; Florida; start 10.30am)16 May 2024: Ireland v Pakistan (T20I; Florida; start 10.30am)
*THE SQUADS
Pakistan T20I Series
Paul Stirling (Capt), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Andrew Balbirnie, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Graham Hume, Barry McCarthy, Neil Rock, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Craig Young.
Tri-Series in Netherlands
Paul Stirling (Capt), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Andrew Balbirnie, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Graham Hume, Barry McCarthy, Neil Rock, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Craig Young.
T20 World Cup in US/Caribbean
Paul Stirling (Capt), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Andrew Balbirnie, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Graham Hume, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Neil Rock, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Craig Young.