Ireland will take on 2021 T20 World Cup finalist New Zealand in first of three T20 matches at the Civil Service Cricket Club ground in Belfast on Monday (July 18). The Black Cap whitewashed hosts Ireland 3-0 in the ODI series and will look to get off to a winning star in the T20s as well. The Kiwis will be led by all-rounder Mitchell Santner for the T20 series.
Ireland skipper Andy Balbirnie demanded the International Cricket Council (ICC) give his country more cricket fixtures, saying that playing just two T20Is against India recently and three ODIs against New Zealand wasn’t quite enough. Ireland gave a commanding performance in the third and final ODI against the Black Caps at Malahide on Friday with Paul Stirling (120) and Harry Tector (108) slamming superb centuries but missed the target of 360 set by the tourists by just one run to lose the series 0-3.
Hey @JimmyNeesh! Following his stint with @NorthantsCCC, Jimmy Neesham is the final player to link up with the squad in Northern Ireland. #IREvNZ pic.twitter.com/uTmv1ch9YQ
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) July 17, 2022
The Andy Balbirnie-led side has been extremely competitive though out the five matches it has played, pushing both the Hardik Pandya-led India and New Zealand to the limit before losing, and the skipper said it’s disappointing his country gets just a handful of fixtures in a year.
“It was an amazing game (third ODI against New Zealand), we did well to go toe-to-toe with them. Bitter pill to swallow but it was great. The two hundreds (from Stirling and Tector) were among the best I’ve seen. Tector has been threatening to do this, getting two in a week is special. Hope he will get more,” said Balbirine.
“We want to be playing these teams regularly, two (T20Is) against India and three (ODIs) here. It’s a pity we don’t play any ODIs for the rest of the year,” he added.
Match Details
The Ireland vs New Zealand 1st T20 match will be played on Monday (July 18).
The Ireland vs New Zealand 1st T20 match will be played at the Civil Service Cricket Club, Belfast.
The Ireland vs New Zealand 1st T20 match will start at 8.30 PM IST.
The Ireland vs New Zealand 1st T20 match will not be available for telecast on any TV channel.
The Ireland vs New Zealand 1st T20 match will be streamed live on FanCode app.
Stay informed on all the latest news, real-time breaking news updates, and follow all the important headlines in india news and world News on Zee News.