Irish Cricket has announced its 15-man provisional squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to be held in the USA and West Indies. The squad remains unchanged from the one that faced Afghanistan in their most recent T20I series.
This continuity reflects Ireland’s successful approach in the 2022 World Cup, where they reached the Super 12s stage after defeating West Indies and Scotland before causing an upset against eventual champions England.
Focus on Familiar Faces with New Additions
Leading the squad is veteran batsman Paul Stirling, who will be making his eighth consecutive T20 World Cup appearance. Stirling is the fifth-highest run-scorer in men’s T20I history, boasting an impressive record in the format.
Three new players have been included in the squad compared to the one fielded 18 months ago:
- Ross Adair: An attacking batsman and the elder brother of seamer Mark Adair.
- Neil Rock: A wicketkeeper-batsman serving as backup to Lorcan Tucker.
- Ben White: A leg-spinner bolstering the bowling attack.
These inclusions come at the expense of Stephen Doheny, Fionn Hand, Conor Olphert, and Simi Singh, who miss out on selection for the World Cup.
Balancing Act: IPL Commitments vs. National Duty
While the core of the squad remains consistent, a notable absentee is fast bowler Josh Little. Little, who impressed with a 4-wicket haul in his first IPL appearance this season, has been permitted to prioritize his commitments with the Gujarat Titans until their final group stage match on May 16th. This decision echoes a similar situation last year, where Little left the IPL mid-tournament to represent Ireland in a crucial ODI series against Bangladesh during World Cup qualification.
Intense Preparation Block Ahead
Head coach Heinrich Malan acknowledged the strategic decision regarding Little and emphasized the importance of the upcoming T20I matches:
“The squad is one that we have gradually developed and tested out over the last 18 or so months,” Malan said. “The skillsets we need to cover are there, albeit we have allowed Josh [Little] to continue in the IPL until his side end their campaign, so he will likely join us ahead of the big tournament.”
“We have an intensive block of T20 cricket coming up this month ahead of the T20 World Cup – we have seven games in 15 days as preparation for the tournament. We will not be treating those seven games as warm-ups, though, we’ll be aiming to win as many of those games as possible.”
Ireland will kick off their T20 World Cup campaign against India on June 5th at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium near New York City. They will then face Canada, USA, and Pakistan in the group stage.
Ireland squad for Pakistan T20Is, Netherlands tri-series and T20 World Cup: Paul Stirling (capt), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Andy Balbirnie, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Graham Hume, Josh Little*, Barry McCarthy, Neil Rock (wk), Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Ben White, Craig Young.
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