Five “squads” that will participate in various formats during Ireland Men’s back-to-back tours of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in March/April 2023 have been named by Cricket Ireland.
The first tour is to Bangladesh, where three one-day internationals, three T20 internationals, and a test match will be played after a warm-up game on March 15. Both the first Test Match and the first multi-format series between the two teams at the senior level will be played in this match.
Two one-day internationals and a test match will be played during the second trip to Sri Lanka. In a similar vein, this will be the first multi-format series and Test Match contested between the two teams at the senior level. On March 11, the squad will leave Dublin.
Ireland head coach Heinrich Malan explained the move back to Test cricket as follows:
The fundamental aspect of red ball cricket for us is that it’s somewhat of a blank canvas; we definitely have some work to do there, but it’s exciting. The main message in our surroundings right now is that we won’t try to play like anyone else; instead, we’ll play in our own unique style. We don’t need to block or play essentially T20 cricket; instead, we want our men to go out there and figure out how we best play red ball cricket.
“There will surely be some bumps in the road, but there will also be some prosperous times. We’ve demonstrated that we have a really strong bunch of young, talented cricketers on the rise, and Test cricket represents a brand-new territory for us to explore.
In response to what type of Test cricket Ireland might play, he said:
In white-ball cricket, I suppose we have a set of players who enjoy playing an aggressive style that spectators enjoy seeing, but in red ball, it’s all about finding the right balance. It involves playing the field, the competition, and the scoreboard as they are in front of you. But these aren’t new discussions from the ones we’ve been having in the T20 or one-day domains; all we need to do is recognise that and continue doing it in the red ball space.
We do have guys who have played Test cricket previously, albeit not recently, but that’s what is exciting about the prospect. That’s just all part of our squad development. We simply want everyone to be certain of their strategy for the red ball game.
We urge the players to be exposed to a variety of situations because “we talk about adaptation and playing what’s in front of you, but that’s what we talk about as staff. We want the players to think on their feet but also to put together a plan and commit to it. However, these discussions are similar to those we had, say, during the World Cup.
Regarding the selection of the Test squad, he said:
“Since 10 of the 15 players in those two Test squads have never played test cricket, 10 of them might make their debuts. Even though it’s not their first time playing for Ireland, it is their first opportunity to play test cricket.
“Look, on the one hand, it’s an exciting task, but on the other hand, given that we haven’t played a lot of red ball cricket, it’s a really frightening challenge. In order to find players who will perform well under the conditions we want to achieve, we must first identify those who have played consistently over long stretches of time in cricket. We have a few players there who haven’t necessarily played a lot of cricket, but we can go test them out to see what they can give us in the long run because we can see the skill set they have.
Regarding the particular players, he said:
“Matthew Humphreys bowls left-handed, which is first and foremost what we screamed out for from a skill set perspective. We also gave serious consideration to his World Cup performance for Ireland’s under-19 team. In that setting, he was the go-to man. He bowled every phase, displayed his competitive nature, and demonstrated his ability to take wickets.
From that perspective, I suppose, he has all the qualities and characteristics we’re searching for. We are working back from some peak tournaments by placing him in a larger team environment where, you know, hopefully he gets some game time at various stages. We are also thinking about where the T20 World Cup will be in 2024 because those sorts of surfaces will help that sort of talent
“He [PJ Moor] has some experience in the middle order and has played a little amount of Test cricket in Bangladesh. He includes that at the gathering. To support the experience side of things as well, it’s helpful to have someone waiting in the wings who could step in with some experience and pertinent information. He will be one of the ten players I mentioned before who haven’t yet represented Ireland on the field. It’s good to have someone of his calibre in and around our workplace given that he has played cricket at the international level.
To be honest, there was a mutual conversation about Paul Stirling over a number of cups of coffee. Everything revolves around his well-being and finding a balance between his playing for Ireland and, obviously, some of his league-related commitments.
We came to the type of arrangement that he will only play white ball cricket for us till the World Cup this year due to the significant spotlight on the format as a pinnacle event in the World Cup. Additionally, while he is missing some of that Test cricket, try to strike a balance in terms of his wellness. Again, this gives some of the guys we want to see in there some opportunities.
In response to David Delany’s rejection, he said:
“Although we had some really insightful discussions about providing that point of differentiation at the end of the summer, I don’t believe I have seen that point of differentiation in the previous 12 months. Additionally, there have been instances when Cricket Ireland extended an opportunity to him that he declined; hence, I believe that there is still work to be done with him both on and off the field.
Hopefully, we can continue to provide him with support in these areas. But from a cricketing standpoint, it all comes down to him providing that point of distinction, which has been mentioned in the past but I haven’t actually seen in the past 12 months.
The selectors for the squads have chosen five teams totaling 22 players for the various formats:
Ireland team for ODI series against Bangladesh
The following players are listed in order of captain Andrew Balbirnie: Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Graham Hume, Matthew Humphreys, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, and Ben White.
Ireland team for T20I series against Bangladesh
Craig Young, Ben White, George Dockrell, Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Curtis Campher, Barry McCarthy, Conor Olphert, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Matthew Humphreys, and Andrew Balbirnie (Capt).
Ireland team for the Test against Bangladesh
PJ Moor, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Andrew Balbirnie (Capt), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Murray Commins, George Dockrell, Graham Hume, Matthew Humphreys, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, and Graham Hume.
Ireland team for the Test against Sri Lanka
PJ Moor, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Matthew Foster, Graham Hume, Matthew Humphreys, Andrew Balbirnie (Capt), Curtis Campher, Murray Commins, George Dockrell, Matthew Foster, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, and Matthew Humphreys.
Ireland team for ODI series against Sri Lanka
Andrew McBrine, Conor Olphert, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young, Matthew Foster, Graham Hume, Gareth Delany, Murray Commins, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Curtis Campher, and Paul Stirling (Capt).
TOUR SCHEDULE – BANGLADESH
Warm-up match
- 15 March: warm-up match – opponent to be announced.
ODI Series
- 18 March: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – 1st ODI (SICS, Sylhet)
- 20 March: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – 2nd ODI (SICS, Sylhet)
- 23 March: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – 3rd ODI (SICS, Sylhet)
T20I Series
- 27 March: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – 1st T20I (ZACS, Chattogram)
- 29 March: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – 2nd T20I (ZACS, Chattogram)
- 31 March: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – 3rd T20I (ZACS, Chattogram)
Test Match
- 4-8 April: Bangladesh Men v Ireland Men – Test Match (SBNCS, Dhaka)
TOUR SCHEDULE – SRI LANKA
Test Match
- 18-22 April: Sri Lanka Men v Ireland Men – Test Match (Galle)
ODI Series
- 26 April: Sri Lanka Men v Ireland Men – 1st ODI (Colombo)
- 23 April: Sri Lanka Men v Ireland Men – 2nd ODI (Colombo)
India
