Ireland Twenty20 World Cup Team

Ireland Team - Twenty20 World Cup Many cricket fans regarded Ireland as the team of the tournament at the 2007 World Cup of Cricket, with their heroic performances against stronger teams helping them qualify for the Super Eights of the World Cup at first attempt. The team then continued this trend at the 2009 Twenty20 World Cup, punching above its weight to reach the Super 8s stage of the tournament.

With the Ireland team steadily improving in both form and confidence, there’s no question that top rated teams will be taken the Irish seriously at the 2010 Twenty20 World Cup.

Twenty20 World Cup History

Ireland did not compete in the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup in 2007. However, following their success in the 2007 Cricket Council (International) Cricket World Cup the team began playing international cricket on a regular basis, ensuring that they would not relinquish the gains made at that tournament.

The consistent improvement of the Ireland national team was evident at the 2009 Cricket Council (International) Twenty20 Qualifier, where the Irish won all their group stage matches to top their group before beating Kenya in the semifinals. The final of the 2009 Cricket Council (International) Twenty20 Qualifier was rained out, leaving the Irish to share the title with the Netherlands.

Ireland produced a strong performance at the 2009 Twenty20 World Cup, reaching the Super 8s courtesy of a victory over Bangladesh. The Irish were less effective in the Super 8s, failing to win a single game. The Irish nevertheless managed to push finalist, Sri Lanka, close in one of its Super 8 matches.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Ireland makes use of a small core of quality professional players to achieve good results in international cricket. The likes of Niall O’Brien, William Porterfield and Eoin Morgan all play first class cricket in England, and bring experience, composure and skill to the side.

Despite the presence of these quality cricketers, Ireland still relies heavily on amateurs to complete its squad, and this significantly weakens the side. The absence of first class experience leaves many of these players out of their depth against regular test playing nations.