Ireland name 14-man squad for India series

Cricket Ireland selectors have named a 14-man squad to take on India in a two-match series in Dublin on 27 and 29 June.
By The Newsroom
Published 21st Jun 2018, 18:15 BST
Updated 21st Jun 2018, 19:18 BST
India captain Virat Kohli. Photo by Ron Gaunt / BCCI / SPORTZPICSIndia captain Virat Kohli. Photo by Ron Gaunt / BCCI / SPORTZPICS
India captain Virat Kohli. Photo by Ron Gaunt / BCCI / SPORTZPICS

The fixtures against India, the world’s third-ranked T20I side, have been hotly anticipated since they were announced in January - Friday’s clash is already sold out and the Wednesday fixture is expected to follow suit with only a few hundred tickets remaining. Demand to see these matches led to Cricket Ireland expanding the capacity of the Malahide Cricket Club ground from 6,500 for the recent Test match, to over 8,000 for the T20Is.

Speaking at the time of the squad announcement, Andrew White, Chairman of National Men’s Selectors for Cricket Ireland, said: “The selectors have chosen what we believe to be a strong, in-form squad for this format of the game that balances experience with youth.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Our deliberations were around finding a side that was competitive now, but with an eye to the future.”

“Many in the squad will be either travelling to Sussex this weekend for the Ed Joyce Testimonial match on Sunday, or will be re-joining the senior squad from their English County sides.

“We had a good look at a number of players on the recent Tri-Series in the Netherlands and this weekend’s match in Sussex will firm up the decisions made on the final playing eleven for the first fixture on Wednesday.

“We will continue our approach of providing opportunities for a wider pool of players to gain experience in T20 cricket on the international stage. With around 12 months to go to the World T20 Cup qualifiers, we are looking to build a competitive squad for that qualification stage and hopefully to propel us into the main tournament in 2020.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The 14-man squad is as follows: Gary Wilson (Captain); Andrew Balbirnie; Peter Chase; George Dockrell; Josh Little; Andrew McBrine; Kevin O’Brien; William Porterfield; Stuart Poynter; Boyd Rankin; James Shannon; Simi Singh; Paul Stirling; Stuart Thompson.

Only a few hundred tickets remain for the game on Wednesday 27 June. The game is expected to sell-out. Tickets can be pre-purchased from Ticketmaster.

The game on Friday 29 June is sold out. The men’s Ireland versus India T20I is part of a double-header, with an Ireland Women versus Bangladesh Women’s T20I starting at 11am, followed by the men’s T20I at 4pm.

It is recommended that fans come early and make a day of it by watching both matches, which will ease traffic, public transport and entry conditions.

The 7pm and 8pm Enterprise Trains to Belfast will make a special stop at Malahide Station.

Related topics:IrelandIndiaTickets