Cricket Ireland have on Friday (July 10) confirmed that Ireland men’s team will play a three-match One Day International (ODI) series against England in July-August amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
With the upcoming ODI series in England, Ireland will begin their World Cup Super League campaign that will also mark their return to cricket after the COVID-19 enforced break.
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Ireland also named a 21-member training squad led by skipper Andrew Balbirnie – who will train behind closed doors in Southampton for the ODI series against England – from which 14 players will be chosen for the series following the warm-up games with the other seven players staying there as cover.
There are only two new faces in the Ireland squad as South African-born Curtis Campher and leg-spinner Jonathan Garth have received maiden call-ups to the national team for the England ODIs.
As per COVID-19 protocols, the Ireland squad will depart from Dublin on 18 July on a special charter flight to Southampton, and then, they will be transported through the bio-secure buses to the hotel on the Ageas Bowl ground, where they will stay until 5 August.
Following the training sessions at the Ageas Bowl, Ireland are scheduled to play two warm-up matches as part of the England tour schedule before the ODIs against England on 30 July, 1, and 4 August.
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Ireland’s chairman of selectors Andrew White said: “The squad selected covers all eventualities – we have picked players that are in obvious contention to play, but also players that will help our batters prepare for the type of opposition we’ll be facing.”
He further added, “We’re delighted that our top wicket-taker in 2019, Mark Adair, returns after recovering from ankle surgery ... While a number of players like Stuart Thompson and Shane Getkate are unfortunate to not to be travelling, the experience that will be gained on this trip by a number of the younger players will be invaluable in their development.
David Delany was not considered for selection this time. As a result of his previous surgery, and the subsequent extended lockdown period, we were not fully confident that he has had the time to complete the necessary amount of preparation in order to safely play in these matches.”
Ireland Squad: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Paul Stirling (vc), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Peter Chase, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Jonathan Garth, Tyrone Kane, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, Kevin O'Brien, William Porterfield, Boyd Rankin, Simi Singh, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Gary Wilson, Craig Young.
(With ANI Inputs)
