WWT20 TEAM GUIDES: Ireland, the underdogs on a learning curve

Ireland’s young players will be sure to draw from the experience of their senior players as they head into the upcoming competition

Ireland are heading into their third T20 World Cup, after taking part in the competition in 2014 and 2016.

They are led by captain Laura Delany, who was named captain after Isobel Joyce stepped down after the 2016 tournament in India.

Ireland’s young players will be sure to draw from the experience of their senior players as they head into the upcoming competition.  

Form

Ireland’s preparation for the World T20 has been positive. In July they were runners-up in the ICC Women’s World T20 Qualifiers. They comfortably beat Thailand, Scotland, Uganda and Papua New Guinea before losing to Bangladesh by 25 runs in the final.

Both Ireland and Bangladesh qualified for the T20 World Cup by making the final. In the final itself Bangladesh won bragging rights.

In the semi-final against Papua New Guinea there were stand-out performances from the in-form Gaby Lewis, who top-scored with 36 and led a 47-run second-wicket partnership. Lucy O’Reilly also performed excellently as she took a career best 3-13.

However, in June Ireland lost in a one-off T20 against New Zealand by 10 wickets and 2-1 in a T20 series against Bangladesh. Nevertheless, the Bangladesh series was a closely fought one with the first two matches being won by Tigers in the final over.

This will give Ireland confidence that they have the ability to match up to their opponents in the Caribbean. However, they are the lowest-ranked team in the competition, placed No.10 in the ICC standings.

^{Kim Garth has Big Bash experience}

Star players

Allrounder Kim Garth and batter Clare Shillington

Opener Garth is one of Ireland’s most exciting young prospects. Garth has some experience in the Women’s Big Bash in Australia, where she was originally with the Sydney Sixers as an associate rookie before being promoted to the full playing squad after displaying her all-round abilities in training.

She made her Big Bash debut in January 2017. In her 36 T20Is she has taken 31 wickets at an average of 19.41, an economy rate of 5.82. She has best figures of 3-6. Garth has also hit 391 runs at an average of 18.61 and a high score of 38 not out.

In 2016 she was selected as the 12th player in the ICC’s T20I Team of the Year. She has been tipped to be one of Ireland’s key players to look out for during the T20 World Cup.

Shillington is one of Ireland’s most experienced batsmen having played 52 T20Is. She has scored 938 runs in the T20 format and will be hoping to clear the 1,000 milestone in the upcoming World Cup. Her batting average is 18.39 with her high score 58 not out.

She has also been showing some superb form with the bat recently. In her last seven innings she has scored 184 runs at an average of 26 with a high score of 47 against Scotland in the T20 World Cup Qualifier.

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Strengths

A key strength of the Ireland women’s team is their seam attack led by Garth, who has recently returned to bowling following an injury. Other faces to note are Joyce, Amy Kenealy and Delaney.

As a bowling force they have taken a collective 96 T20I wickets and are sure to want to bring that mark over 100 during the World Cup.

^{Clare Shillington}

Weaknesses

Their biggest weakness will be their lack of experience in major competitions.

Ireland have not played a great deal against the world’s best teams and best players and so the T20 World Cup will be a challenging competition.

Another weakness will be their level of fielding compared to the more experienced sides in the competition.

Chances of winning

Ireland are yet to register a victory in the T20 World Cup, having lost all their matches during the 2014 and 2016 tournaments.

As the lowest ranked side in the competition it is unlikely that they will match up to the teams in their group. They are in a very tough group with opposition of Australia, India, New Zealand and Pakistan. 

WORLD T20 SQUADS

Prediction: Group stage

Bet you didn’t know

Lucy O’Reilly was just 14 when she represented Ireland at the T20 World Cup in 2014.

Fixture list (all UK time): Australia (Nov 11, 8pm), Pakistan (Nov 13, 8pm), India (Nov 15, 3pm), New Zealand (Nov 17, 8pm)