Ireland to feature in Desert T20 Competition before facing England in Bristol
12 January 2017
On Friday 5 May, Gloucestershire Cricket will host England and Ireland in an action packed Royal London One-Day International fixture. While England are out in India gearing up for a busy summer of cricket, opponents Ireland will be taking part in an International Desert T20 Competition hosted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The Desert T20 Challenge is an inaugural T20 tournament that will be kicking off on Saturday 14 January with the final match to be played on Friday 20 January. The eight participating countries are: UAE, Oman, Afghanistan, Scotland, Ireland, Namibia, Hong Kong and The Netherlands. The aim of the tournament is to provide an opportunity for Associate teams to play more competitive Men’s T20 Cricket.
Ireland, led by former Gloucestershire Head Coach John Bracewell, have been drawn in Group A with Afghanistan, Namibia and the hosts UAE. This will be the first time Ireland will have played Afghanistan since the controversial tied ODI Series held in Ireland during the summer of 2016. It could also be a preview of what is to come when Ireland play the same side in 5 ODIs, 3 T20Is and an ICup match in India in March.
If Ireland progress out of their group, they will play their Semi-Final in a similar format to the NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day hosted in this Country, where both Semi-Finals and the Final are played on the same day. All of this will take place in Dubai’s International Cricket Stadium on Friday 20 January.
There are chances for some individual achievements to be made on the tour for Ireland. George Dockrell is in line to make his 150th cap, whilst former Gloucestershire player, William Porterfield, could make his 50th appearance for Ireland along with team mates Gary Wilson and Stuart Thompson.
Tickets are now on sale to watch England take on Ireland here at the Brightside Ground in Bristol. This historic fixture will be the first match of England’s busy summer of International Cricket on home soil. Previous International fixtures in Bristol have sold out, so we are advising supporters to purchase tickets early to avoid disappointment. Click here to secure your seat.
