Photo Credit: Oisin Keniry
Ireland Men’s cricket team has arrived in Hobart ahead of the start of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup starting Monday – and Paul Stirling was talking from the team hotel after arriving in the Tasmanian capital.
Stirling, 32, made his international debut in 2008 against New Zealand in a one-day international, then made his T20 International debut against Pakistan in 2009. He has 340 caps for Ireland, including having played 114 T20Is – having scored 3,011 runs in T20Is, the world’s sixth-highest run-scorer in this format.
Stirling said of the current tour:
“There’s no doubt that we would’ve liked to have played a few more warm-up games, but the lads have had some very good sessions in the nets or indoors. We still have a couple of training sessions in Hobart between now and the first game to fine-tune a few skills, but we feel ready for Monday’s first game against Zimbabwe.
“Playing at the MCG the other night was a great experience for the squad – I haven’t played there before myself, and it has just given that little bit extra motivation to the lads as they now want to get back there and play in front of a crowd at what is one of the world’s iconic cricket grounds.”
About the tournament ahead and the team’s approach, he said:
“Clarity of role is something important that Heinrich [Malan] has focused on, and to have a management team behind you that really encourages taking the positive option has certainly injected that confidence in the playing group.
“Hobart holds fond memories for those of us in the squad who played at the 2015 World Cup, the win against Zimbabwe has gone down in Irish cricket history as one of those legendary wins and I know it inspired many kids back home to take up the sport – which is one thing we want to achieve as a squad.
“We’re now getting down to the pointy end, and now just looking forward to getting the competitive action underway.”
Ireland Men will train at Kingston Twin Ovals tomorrow, then at Bellerive Oval on Sunday – including training under floodlights.
The first tournament match will be against Zimbabwe at Bellerive Oval starting at 7pm (local time). Livescoring will be available through the ICC website, while the match will be shown on Sky Sports in Ireland / UK, and a highlights package will be made available by the ICC following the game.
Ireland Men’s official sponsor at the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is Amul – our thanks to the team from Amul for their valuable support.
ICC MEN’S T20 WORLD CUP 2022
Fixtures
First Round matches:
• 17 October: Ireland v Zimbabwe (T20 World Cup Round 1; Hobart; start time 7pm)
• 19 October: Ireland v Scotland (T20 World Cup Round 1; Hobart; start time 3pm)
• 21 October: Ireland v West Indies (T20 World Cup Round 1; Hobart; start time 3pm)
* All times are local to venue
For the full tournament schedule, see: https://www.t20worldcup.com/fixtures
Broadcast
Broadcast details for Ireland/UK as they stand are:
• 17 October: Ireland v Zimbabwe – Sky Sports Cricket
• 19 October: Ireland v Scotland – Sky Sports Cricket
• 21 October: Ireland v West Indies – Sky Sports Main Event
Ireland Men’s squad
Andrew Balbirnie (captain), Paul Stirling (vice-captain), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Fionn Hand, Graham Hume, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Conor Olphert, Simi Singh, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker.
Name of Author: Cricket Ireland
Cricket Ireland, officially known as The Irish Cricket Union Company Limited by Guarantee, is the governing body for cricket on the island of Ireland. It oversees the national men’s and women’s teams and organizes the Inter-Provincial Series, Super 3s, and All-Ireland club competitions. Ireland achieved Test status for women in 2000 and for men in 2017 when it became a Full Member of the ICC.
