Ireland Women's squad announced for ICC Cricket World Cup qualifier
A 15-player Ireland Women's squad has been selected for the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup qualifier tournament taking place next month.
The line-up includes Northern Ireland’s Alana Dalzell, Amy Hunter, Kia McCartney and Cara Murray.
The qualifier tournament is a six-team event in round-robin format from April 5-18. The other countries taking part are West Indies, Thailand, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Scotland.
The top two teams will then qualify for the 2025 ICC Women's Cricket World Cup to be played in September.
Ireland Women will leave on March 28 for a training camp in Dubai. They will then travel to Pakistan on April 4, with warm-up fixtures scheduled against West Indies Women and Thailand Women.
Ed Joyce, Ireland Women's Head Coach, said: “This tournament will be a great challenge for testing the depth of the senior squad, while we manage a number of player injuries that have been sustained over the last several months.
"Given the volume of matches and upcoming tournaments, there is a need to develop a wider talent pool of players ready to step up and cope with the demands of international cricket.
“Due to the nature of the competition, it’s going to be a whole-of-squad effort to get through this qualifier, with five 50-over matches and two warm-up games.”
The Ireland squad is as follows: Gaby Lewis (captain), Ava Canning, Christina Coulter Reilly, Alana Dalzell, Laura Delany, Sarah Forbes, Amy Hunter, Arlene Kelly, Louise Little, Sophie MacMahon, Jane Maguire, Kia McCartney, Cara Murray, Leah Paul, Orla Prendergast (vice-captain)