'Our main aim is to qualify for a World Cup, that would be fantastic' - Gareth Delany ahead of ODI World Cup Qualifier

DUBLIN – The 15-player Ireland Men’s squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe departed on June 9 with a singular focus over the next month – achieve World Cup qualification.

The Qualifier event will see 10 teams competing for two spots in the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup – the qualifier will be held in Zimbabwe from June 18 to July 9.

Speaking prior to departure, leg-spinner Ben White said: “We're just looking forward to get over there to play some intense cricket. We’ll be playing some of the world's best teams in Sri Lanka and West Indies – but, hopefully, we can play our best and come away with World Cup qualification and be heading to India in October.

“Last time we were in Zimbabwe it was summer-time, so we expect conditions to be different – maybe not as sunny, but dry. The schedule is pretty intense, so there won’t be much personal time, but there may be a bit of X-box played and hopefully we can get out to a safari or two, but it’s going to be busy.”

White revealed that he would be ‘rooming’ on the tour with Munster Reds teammate, Gareth Delany. Delany was also speaking ahead of departure:

“Our main aim is to qualify for a World Cup, that would be fantastic. It's definitely going to be a competitive tournament, but we can take great confidence from the World Cup Super League - there were perhaps 5 or so games in that competition where we could have got across the line, but didn’t. Hopefully, we can be a little more clinical over the next few weeks. 50-over cricket is a roller-coaster – it usually has plenty of ups and downs during a match, so for a player it's a lot more exciting to play at times that a T20.

“With a squad of 15 at a long tournament, you would hope to play a bit – but as a squad member, all you can do is be as prepared as best you can for when you get called up to play.”

Ireland Squad

Andrew Balbirnie (capt) (Pembroke), Mark Adair (CIYMS), Curtis Campher (YMCA), Gareth Delany (Leinster), George Dockrell (Phoenix), Graham Hume (Waringstown), Josh Little (Pembroke), Andy McBrine (Donemana), Barry McCarthy (Pembroke), PJ Moor (Clontarf), Paul Stirling (North Down), Harry Tector (YMCA), Lorcan Tucker (Pembroke), Ben White (Phoenix), Craig Young (Bready).

Coaching and support staff

With Nathan Hauritz unavailable, Cobus Pienaar has been brought in as a consultant coach to support the squad’s preparations ahead of the tournament. Pienaar is a South African-born former first-class cricketer turned coach, who played briefly for Waringstown in 2016.

The management team:

• Head Coach: Heinrich Malan
• Batting and Wicketkeeping Coach: Gary Wilson
• Fast Bowling Coach: Ryan Eagleson
• Coach Consultant: Cobus Pienaar
• Physiotherapist: Mark Rausa
• Strength & Conditioning: Brendan Conner
• Performance Analyst: Scott Irvine
• Team Operations Manager: Chris Siddell

The qualifier event

The 10 teams taking part in the qualifier are split into two groups of five teams:

Group A:

• Zimbabwe
• West Indies
• Netherlands
• Nepal
• United States

Group B:

• Sri Lanka
• Ireland
• Scotland
• Oman
• United Arab Emirates

Each side will play the other teams in their group once with the top three from each group progressing to the Super Six stage. In the Super Six, they will play the sides they did not meet in the group stage.

All points won in the group stage will be carried over to the Super Six stage apart from those gained against the teams that fail to make it to the Super Six stage. The two top teams after the Super Six stage will contest the final, and will both progress to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.

For the first time in this tournament, DRS will be used for all matches from the Super Six stage onwards.

The Qualifier is the culmination of four years of hard-fought competition that brings together the bottom five teams from the ICC Men’s CWC Super League, three automatic qualifiers from the ICC Men’s CWC League 2 and two teams who gained entry from the ICC Men’s CWC Qualifier Play-off.

IRELAND MEN’S FIXTURES

Warm-up matches:

• 13 June: Ireland v USA, Bulawayo Athletic Club (start 9am local time)
• 15 June: Ireland v Netherlands, Queen’s Sports Club (start 9am local time)

Group A matches:

• 19 June: Ireland v Oman, Bulawayo Athletic Club (start 9am local time)
• 21 June: Ireland v Scotland, Queen’s Sports Club (start 9am local time)
• 25 June: Sri Lanka v Ireland, Queen’s Sports Club (start 9am local time)
• 27 June: Ireland v UAE, Bulawayo Athletic Club (start 9am local time)