Dublin: Ireland have brought in all-rounder Fionn Hand and leg-spinner Gareth Delany in their 15-member squad for three-match T20I series against India, starting from August 18 in Malahide.
Hand had missed out on selection in Ireland’s recent qualification for the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup while Delany is returning from injury after breaking his wrist during the Men’s ODI World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe in June.
“Giving opportunities to players also filters down the series themselves, so I would expect that all of the 15 players named in the India series squad will feature at some point. The Indian side arriving in Ireland is an exciting one for the supporters, but as we showed last year, we have the talent and confidence to match them on the field of play and we have high hopes for another fiercely contested series.
So, while the immediate task at hand for Heinrich and the leadership team is on the India challenge, we are definitely framing this series as an important component of a longer-term plan to be ready to take on the world’s best at the T20 World Cup next year,” said Andrew White, Ireland Men’s national selector, in a media release.
The three T20I matches between India and Ireland will be played in Malahide on August 18, 20 and 23. The series is Ireland’s first bilateral T20I series since securing 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup qualification and White insisted it is being treated accordingly as part of the strategic planning for that tournament scheduled for June 2024 in West Indies and the USA.
“The recent qualifying campaign in Scotland was the first stage of our strategic planning for next June’s T20 World Cup. We currently have around 15 T20 Internationals scheduled between now and the World Cup, so it is important that we use each of these to continue to build on areas that the coaching team have identified,” he said.
“We only have a limited time between now and the end of the 2023 domestic season, so it’s also crucial that we use what opportunities we have to provide exposure and experience to a pool of players who we believe are in contention for making that World Cup squad,” he added.
India and Ireland played a two-match T20I series in June 2022, with the visitors winning the series 2-0, though the hosts’ came close to winning.
During the upcoming tour, India will be captained by pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who will be making a comeback to international cricket after a layoff caused by back injury since September last year.
Apart from Bumrah, pacer Prasidh Krishna will be coming back to international cricket after being nearly out for a year due to lumbar stress fracture in the back. Both Bumrah and Prasidh had been recuperating and achieving full fitness at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru after undergoing back surgeries.
Ireland squad: Paul Stirling (captain), Andrew Balbirnie, Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Fionn Hand, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Theo van Woerkom, Ben White, Craig Young.
(IANS)
