Ireland

Nickname(s)	Green and Whites
Association	Cricket Ireland
Personnel
Test captain	Andrew Balbirnie
One Day captain	Paul Stirling
T20I captain	Paul Stirling
Coach	Heinrich Malan
History
Test status acquired	2017
International Cricket Council
ICC status	Associate Member (1993) Full Member (2017)
ICC region	ECC
ICC Rankings Current[3] Best-ever Test 10th 10th (28 July 2024) ODI 11th 10th (23 April 2007)[1] T20I 11th 8th (31 March 2012)[2]
Tests
First Test	v.  Pakistan at The Village, Malahide; 11–15 May 2018
Last Test	v.  Zimbabwe at Stormont, Belfast; 25–28 July 2024
Tests Played Won/Lost Total[4] 9 2/7 (0 draws) This year[5] 2 2/0 (0 draws)
One Day Internationals
First ODI	v.  England at Stormont, Belfast; 13 June 2006
Last ODI	v.  South Africa at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi; 7 October 2024
ODIs Played Won/Lost Total[6] 204 81/105 (3 ties, 15 no results) This year[7] 5 1/4 (0 ties, 0 no results)
World Cup appearances	3 (first in 2007)
Best result	Super 8 (2007)
World Cup Qualifier appearances	7 (first in 1994)
Best result	Champions (2009)
Twenty20 Internationals
First T20I	v.  Scotland at Stormont, Belfast; 2 August 2008
Last T20I	v.  South Africa at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi; 29 September 2024
T20Is Played Won/Lost Total[8] 171 72/90 (2 ties, 7 no results) This year[9] 14 6/8 (0 ties, 0 no results)
T20 World Cup appearances	8 (first in 2009)
Best result	Super 8 (2009)
T20 World Cup Qualifier appearances	5[a] (first in 2008)
Best result	Champions (2008, 2012, 2013)
Test kit ODI kit T20I kit
As of 7 October 2024

The Ireland men's cricket team represents all of Ireland in international cricket. The Irish Cricket Union, operating under the brand Cricket Ireland, is the sport's governing body in Ireland, and they organise the international team. The team have a number of home grounds, including Malahide in County Dublin, Stormont, Belfast, Bready in the north-west and Clontarf in Dublin city. A further ground is planned for the National Sports Campus in Abbotstown, Dublin for 2030.^[10] Due to the short season allowed by the Irish climate, and lack of large scale facilities, Ireland also occasionally play 'home matches' in venues in England and further abroad.

Ireland's men participate in all three major forms of the international game, Test, One-Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) matches. They are the 11th Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and the second Full Member from Europe, having been awarded Test status, along with Afghanistan, on 22 June 2017.^{[11][12][13][14]} Ireland and Afghanistan are the most recently appointed Test-playing nations.

Modern Cricket was introduced to Ireland in the 19th century, though cricket may have partly evolved from earlier Gaelic games invented in Ireland.^{[15][16][17][18]} The first match played by an Ireland team was in 1855. Ireland toured Canada and the United States in the late 19th century, and occasionally hosted matches against touring sides. Ireland's most significant early international rivalry, with the Scotland national cricket team, was established when the teams first played each other in 1888.^[19] Ireland's maiden first-class match was played in 1902.

Ireland were elected to Associate membership of the ICC in 1993, but played their first full ODI in 2006 against England in the build-up to the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup, their first successful qualification. At that tournament, a series of eye-catching results against Full Members, including a draw against Zimbabwe, and wins against Pakistan and Bangladesh confirmed Ireland's ODI status after the competition. Since then, they have gone on to play 197 ODIs, resulting in 78 victories, 101 defeats, 15 no results, and 3 ties.^[20] Contracts for players were introduced in 2009, marking the transition to becoming a professional team.

Further success in the shortest format meant the Ireland team also qualified for the 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2021, 2022,^[21][22] and 2024^[b] World Twenty20 competitions, and have qualified for the future 2026 T20 World Cup by ICC men's T20 world rankings.

Before attaining Test status, Ireland also played first-class international cricket in the ICC Intercontinental Cup, which they have won four times between 2005 and 2013. Due to their successes in the first-class ICC Intercontinental Cup competition, and further high-profile wins at the World Cups of 2011 (against England) and 2015 (against West Indies and Zimbabwe), they were labelled the "leading Associate"^[23] and stated their intention to become a full member by 2020. This intention was realised in June 2017, when the ICC unanimously decided to award Ireland and Afghanistan Full Member status, which allows them to participate in Test matches.^[24] Ireland's first test was a home fixture at The Village, Malahide between 11-15 May 2018 against Pakistan, and they have played tests somewhat sporadically since. Their first test victory was against fellow new boys Afghanistan in Sharjah on 12 March 2024.

Ireland remain the only test playing nation, where the women's team have played a test match before the men's team.^[25] Ireland was a women's test nation seventeen years before the men, playing their only test also against Pakistan.

The first mention of modern cricket in Ireland was in 1731 when the Military of Ireland and the Gentlemen of Ireland took each other on in the Phoenix Park, where the game still thrives in one of the world's oldest established cricket clubs. However, the origins of Cricket may, in fact, have come from Ireland, via the ancient Gaelic game of 'Katty', a precursor to the modern game of Rounders in Ireland. Katty was exported around the world by Irishmen serving in the British Army and the game was adopted as both a training and recreational activity by British Army soldiers. The evolution of Katty in the empire is reflected in the use of anglicised Gaelic terms such as crioc, crios, bail, googly, still used in cricket as we know it today.^{[15][16][17][18]}

Modern Cricket was introduced to Ireland by the English in the towns of Kilkenny and Ballinasloe in the early 19th century. In the 1830s, the game began to spread; many of the clubs which were founded in the following 30 years are still in existence today.^[26] The first Irish national team played in 1855 against The Gentlemen of England in Dublin. In the 1850s, the Englishman Charles Lawrence was responsible for developing the game in Ireland through his coaching.^[26] In the 1850s and 1860s, Ireland was visited for the first time by touring professional teams. Ireland's first match against Marylebone Cricket Club (the M.C.C.) was in 1858.^[26][16]

Cricket had flourished throughout the Ireland until the early 1880s. However, the Irish Land War, the Gaelic Revival cultural movement and its offshoot the Gaelic Athletic Association, founded in 1884, began to challenge the popularity of cricket. There were widespread calls to establish a national cricketing union in Ireland the 1870s to oversee the sport but landlords who owned the estates on which cricket was predominantly played declined to do so, many believing the game would distract their tenant farmers from working and thus impact the estates' income at a time when the land war was already depleting landlords wealth. One of those to call for a formal body to organise cricket was Michael Cusack, later the founder of the GAA. Cusack, was a keen cricketer, later tried to organise cricket under the umbrella of the newly formed Gaelic Athletic Association. His motion, however, lost out narrowly. Consequently, in 1902 cricket fell under the GAA's newly introduced Law 27 banning its members from playing "foreign", in practice, British, games. Until the ban was lifted in 1970, anyone playing foreign games, such as cricket or association football, was banned from the membership of the GAA, the organisation responsible for games such as hurling, Gaelic football, rounders, and Gaelic handball. Though an Irish Cricket union was set up in 1923 some clubs refused to recognise it, it was only in 2001 that Cricket Ireland became the official oversight body for cricket in Ireland recognised by all cricket clubs in the country.^{[15][16][17][18]}

Thereafter Cricket in Ireland declined in popularity, especially in the era after the land war as the sport became associated with being a "garrison game" of the British Army. Participation became increasingly restricted to Catholic and Protestant public schools, the Anglo-Irish population, and unionists. Irish teams toured Canada and the US in 1879, 1888, 1892, and 1909. On top of this, Ireland defeated a touring South African side in 1904.^[26] Their first match with first-class status was played on 19 May 1902 against a London County side including W.G. Grace. The Irish, captained by Sir Tim O'Brien, won convincingly by 238 runs.^[27] An Irish Cricket union was eventually set up in 1923 but some clubs refused to recognise its legitimacy. It was only in 2001 that Cricket Ireland became the official oversight body for cricket in Ireland recognised by all cricket clubs on the island.^{[15][16][17][18]}

After the 1902 tour of England, where four matches yielded one win, two draws and one loss, Ireland did not play first-class cricket again for five years.^[28] Although the team had lost to the South Africans in 1894 – Ireland's first match against a Test-playing nation – Ireland defeated South Africa in 1904; it was the team's first victory against a Test side.^[29] In 1909, the first annual first-class match between Ireland and Scotland was held, and an annual match against the MCC was arranged from 1924 onwards.^[26]

The Irish played yearly first-class matches with the Scots, only interrupted by world wars, until 1999, but all their other cricket depended upon touring international sides finding it convenient to include a visit to Ireland in their schedules. However, Ireland sometimes surprised Test nations on these occasions, beating the West Indies by 60 runs in a three-day match in Dublin in 1928, for example; it was Ireland's first match against the West Indies.^[29] In 1969, in a match played at Sion Mills in County Tyrone, the team defeated a West Indian side including Clive Lloyd and Clyde Walcott by nine wickets, after bowling them out for 25.^[30] This was the last time Ireland defeated a touring side until 2003, when they beat Zimbabwe by ten wickets.^[31]

The Scots and the Irish were mostly competing with Sri Lanka for the title as the best non-Test nation at the time – indeed, Ireland drew with Sri Lanka in a rain-hit first-class match in 1979, Ireland scoring a total of 341 for 7 in two innings, while Sri Lanka made 288 for 6 in one innings. Ireland, along with Scotland and the Netherlands, has at times played in competitions for English county cricket sides, including the Benson & Hedges Cup and the Friends Provident Trophy (previously the C&G Trophy). Since there is no nationality restriction in county cricket, non-Irish people were allowed to compete for Ireland in these matches. For example, Hansie Cronje of South Africa played for Ireland in 1997,^[32] as did New Zealander Jesse Ryder in 2007.^[33]

Ireland joined the ICC as an Associate Member in 1993, a year before Scotland.^[34] This meant Ireland could play in the ICC Trophy for the first time in 1994, and they finished seventh in the tournament.^[35] Three years later they progressed to the semi-finals of the competition but lost the third place play-off with Scotland, thus missing a place at the 1999 cricket World Cup. Ireland finished eighth in the 2001 tournament.^[36] After this, Adrian Birrell was hired as coach.^[17]

With the introduction of the ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2004,^[37] Ireland had a chance to play first-class on a regular basis. After failing to progress beyond the group stages in the 2004 competition,^[38] Ireland won their first Cup title in October 2005 with a six-wicket win over Kenya.^[39] The 2005 ICC Trophy, which was hosted in Ireland – the group stages in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the final stages in Dublin, Republic of Ireland – saw the Irish make the final, which they lost to Scotland.^[40] Though Ireland were runners-up, they had secured their place at the 2007 World Cup as well as an extra $500,000 over the next four years from the ICC to encourage development of Irish cricket.^[41] They also gained official ODI status.^[41]

Ireland's inaugural ODI was played in front of a full house of 7,500 spectators at Stormont, Belfast, on 13 June 2006 against England. It was the first time Ireland had played the full England side. Though Ireland lost by 38 runs, they were praised by Andrew Strauss, England's stand-in captain.^[42][43]

13 June 2006 [1]

England  301/7 (50 overs)	v	Ireland 263/9 (50 overs)
Marcus Trescothick 113 (114) Dave Langford-Smith 3/63 (10 overs)		Andre Botha 52 (89) Steve Harmison 3/58 (10 overs)

England won by 38 runs Stormont, Belfast Umpires: Roger Dill (BER) and DB Hair (AUS) Player of the match: Marcus Trescothick (Eng)

• England won the toss and elected to bat.
• First ever ODI match for Ireland.

August saw them participate in Division One of the European Championship, against Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands and Scotland. The games against the Netherlands and Scotland had ODI status. In the tournament, and what was the team's second ODI, Ireland recorded their first ODI win, beating fellow Associates Scotland by 85 runs after man-of-the-match Eoin Morgan made 99.^[44] Although the match against the Netherlands was a no-result, Ireland won the European Championship title.^[45] Ireland's second Intercontinental Cup title came in the 2006–2007 competition. They faced Canada in the final and won by an innings and 115 runs, the four-day match concluding within two days. This made Ireland the first team to successfully defend the Continental Cup.^[46]

For the 2006 season, the C&G Trophy was reorganised to include a round-robin stage instead of being entirely knock-out. Whereas Ireland had only one match guaranteed in the tournament before, they now had more fixtures against English county sides. Ireland recorded one win in their nine matches.^[47] Ireland participated in the competition until it was restructured again in 2009. In that time they played 25 matches and won two.^[48][49] The latter of those victories was against Worcestershire; in that match Ireland bowled Worcestershire out for 58, which was their lowest ever one-day total. It was the first time that Ireland had bowled out a county for less than 100.^[50][51] Ireland were invited to participate in the reformatted competition from 2010 onwards, but chose not to do so, and instead focused their limited financial resources on international cricket.^[52]

At the start of 2007, Ireland saw more than three months of almost constant cricket. First was a visit to Kenya, where they took part in Division One of the ICC World Cricket League. They finished fifth in the league after four narrow defeats, and Kenya won the league.^[53] Before the World Cup, the team participated in a high-performance camp in South Africa.^[54] Ireland's performance in their inaugural World Cup in the 2007 Cricket World Cup took many pundits by surprise. In their first game, on 15 March, they tied with Zimbabwe, primarily thanks to Ireland's first ever World Cup century by man-of-the-match Jeremy Bray and economical bowling in the final overs by Trent Johnston and Andre Botha.^[55] In their second match, played on Saint Patrick's Day, they beat the fourth-ranked team in the world, Pakistan, by three wickets, thus knocking Pakistan out of the competition.^[56]

17 March 2007 Scorecard

Pakistan  132 (45.4 overs)	v	Ireland 133/7 (41.4 overs)
Kamran Akmal 27 (47) Boyd Rankin 3/32 (9 overs)		Niall O'Brien 72 (107) Mohammad Sami 3/29 (10 overs)

Ireland won by 3 wickets (D/L method) Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Brian Jerling (SA) Player of the match: Niall O'Brien (Ire)

• Rain and bad light reduced Ireland's target to 133 from 47 overs.

These two results were enough to advance Ireland to the Super 8 stage of the tournament. In their final group stage game, the West Indies beat them by eight wickets.^[57] In the Super 8 stage, they lost their five matches against England, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, and Sri Lanka, but recorded a 74-run victory against Test playing nation Bangladesh, the 9th ranked team in the world. The team received a heroes' welcome in Dublin.^[58]

After the World Cup, former West Indies cricketer Phil Simmons took over the role of coach from Birrell.^[59] India were scheduled to play South Africa in a series of One Day Internationals in Ireland in June 2007. Ireland also played one-off matches at Stormont against the two teams. Missing several players from their World Cup squad, Ireland lost both games.^[60] Ireland hosted a quadrangular tournament in Dublin and Belfast in July involving the West Indies, the Netherlands, and Scotland. Ireland and the West Indies both won their games against Scotland and the Netherlands with their direct encounter ending in no result due to rain. The West Indies won the tournament because of a bonus point won against the Netherlands.^[61] Trent Johnston stepped down as captain and was replaced by William Porterfield in March 2008.^[62]

The 2007–08 ICC Intercontinental Cup began in June, with Ireland playing their first match in August. In November 2008, the team's campaign ended. After finishing second in the round-robin stage of the competition, Ireland faced Namibia in the final. Ireland won by nine wickets, securing their third consecutive Intercontinental Cup title.^[63] In March 2008 Ireland toured Bangladesh, playing three ODIs against the hosts and losing all of them.^[64] In July, Ireland played a tri-series against New Zealand and Scotland in Aberdeen but lost both matches.^[65]

Reigning champions Ireland hosted the European Cricket Championship (Division One) in late July and they won their third European title, winning every match, including the decisive encounter against Scotland by seven wickets.^[66] In early August, Ireland hosted five other Associate nations at the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in Belfast; this was Ireland's Twenty20 International debut. Ireland would have faced the Netherlands in the final, however the match was rained off and the teams shared the trophy.^[67] By getting to the final of the tournament, Ireland qualified for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 in England in June 2009. Later in August, Ireland were due to play three ODIs at home against Kenya. Ireland won the first game, the second game could not be finished due to rain and the last match was completely washed out.^[68] In October, the team visited Kenya for a tri-series of ODIs with the hosts and Zimbabwe. Only two of Ireland's four games in the round-robin stage could be played, the others were rained off. Ireland lost their first match to Zimbabwe,^[69] but won their second against Kenya, though they failed to qualify for the final.^[70][71]

In the run-up to the 2009 ICC World Twenty20, Ireland were deprived of batsman Eoin Morgan, similarly to Ed Joyce several years earlier, who was selected to play for England, making him ineligible to play for Ireland again.^[72] Ireland played their first Twenty20 International against a full ICC member side on 8 June 2009 and in their opening match of the tournament defeated Bangladesh by four wickets and knocked them out of the tournament.^[73][74] Ireland progressed to the second stage of the competition. They were grouped with New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and lost all three of their matches. In 2009, Ireland played nine ODIs, winning the seven they played against Associate nations, losing their only match against a Test team (England), and one match was abandoned.^[75]

Ireland played 17 One Day Internationals in 2010, winning 11 (including a victory over Bangladesh) and losing six.^[76] Ireland were knocked out of the 2010 ICC World Twenty20, hosted by South Africa in April and May, after being beaten by the West Indies and a washed out match against England.

The 2011 Cricket World Cup was held between February and March and hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. Though Ireland did not progress beyond the first round they secured a historic victory against England.^[77] Ireland beat England by 3 wickets with Kevin O'Brien hitting the fastest century in World Cup history, managing the feat in just 50 balls.^[78] In passing England's total of 327 for victory, Ireland broke the record for the highest successful run chase in the World Cup.^[79]

2 March 2011 Scorecard

England  327/8 (50 overs)	v	Ireland 329/7 (49.1 overs)
Jonathan Trott 92 (92) Trent Johnston 2/58 (10 overs)		Kevin O'Brien 113 (63) Graeme Swann 3/47 (10 overs)

Ireland won by 3 wickets M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pak) and Billy Bowden (NZ) Player of the match: Kevin O'Brien (Ire)

• England won the toss and elected to bat.

Shortly after the tournament ended, the ICC announced that the World Cups in 2015 and 2019 would contain ten teams; the Associate countries, who were most likely to miss out in a tournament with fewer teams strongly objected, and, led by Ireland, urged the ICC to reconsider. In June the decision was reversed.^[80][81] After the World Cup Ireland played Pakistan, England, and Scotland in ODIs but lost each match.^[77] A further ODI against Sri Lanka was rained off. In all, Ireland played 12 ODIs in 2011, winning four.^[82]

Ireland qualified for the 2015 Cricket World Cup, and were promoted to the ICC ODI Championship, leaving the World Cricket League, but not the ICC Intercontinental Cup. In their first match of the World Cup, Ireland defeated the West Indies by 4 wickets, chasing down 304 runs with 25 balls to spare.^[83]

16 February 2015 Scorecard

West Indies  304/7 (50 overs)	v	Ireland 307/6 (45.5 overs)
Lendl Simmons 102 (84) George Dockrell 3/50 (10 overs)		Paul Stirling 92 (84) Jerome Taylor 3/71 (8.5 overs)

Ireland won by 4 wickets Saxton Oval, Nelson Umpires: Richard Illingworth (Eng) and Bruce Oxenford (Aus) Player of the match: Paul Stirling (Ire)

• Ireland won the toss and elected to field.

In their second match they beat the United Arab Emirates by two wickets with four balls to spare; the target was 279. Out of only five successful World Cup chases of 300 runs or more, Ireland have provided three.^[84][85]

In July 2016, Ireland played in its first five-match ODI series against Afghanistan which ended 2–2 with the first ODI being washed out. In September, Ireland toured South Africa for a one match ODI series against Australia and the hosts but lost both games. At the ICC's board meeting in October, Ireland was awarded first-class status for its domestic competition, the Inter-Provincial Championship.

In May 2017, Ireland travelled to England to play a two-match ODI series for the first time, though they ended up losing both games.

In January 2012 Cricket Ireland chief executive Warren Deutrom publicly declared Ireland's ambition to play Test cricket by 2020. Their desire to achieve Test status was in part to stem the tide of Irish players using residency rules to switch to England for the opportunity to play Test cricket. Deutrom outlined the ambition as he unveiled the new strategic plan for Irish cricket to 2015. The plan set out a series of stretching goals including increasing the number of participants in the game to 50,000, setting a target of reaching 8th in the World rankings, establishing a domestic first-class cricket structure, and reinforcing cricket as the fifth most popular team sport in Ireland.^[86][87]

Deutrom had already sent a letter to the ICC in 2009 stating his board's intention to apply for Full Membership – a potential pathway to Test cricket – and to seek clarification on the process.^[88] Former Australian bowler Jason Gillespie said that if Ireland got Test status it "would be huge news in world cricket, and it would be a massive positive story for the world game".^[89] Following Ireland's victory over the West Indies in the 2015 Cricket World Cup, former fast bowler Michael Holding said that the International Cricket Council should grant Ireland Test status immediately, saying "they need to be recognised now".^[90] The ICC said in 2015 that Ireland would be granted Test status in 2019 should they win the 2015–17 ICC Intercontinental Cup and beat the 10th ranked Test nation in a four-match Test series in 2018.^[91]

However, on 22 June 2017, after more than a decade of playing top-class international cricket, full ICC membership was granted to Ireland (along with Afghanistan) at an ICC meeting in London, thus making them the eleventh Test cricket team.^[92] In October 2017, the ICC announced that Ireland's first Test match would be at home against Pakistan in May 2018.^[93][94] Ireland played their first 'touring' Test in India in March 2019 against fellow newcomers Afghanistan, where they lost by 7 wickets. This was followed by a four-day Test match against England at Lord's in July 2019.^[95] According to the ICC Future Tours Programme for 2019–23, Ireland are scheduled to play sixteen Tests, but along with Afghanistan and Zimbabwe, are not included in the first two editions of the ICC World Test Championship.^[96]

11–15 May 2018[c] Scorecard

Pakistan	v	Ireland
310/9d (96 overs) Faheem Ashraf 83 (115) Tim Murtagh 4/45 (25 overs)		130 (47.2 overs) Kevin O'Brien 40 (68) Mohammad Abbas 4/44 (11 overs)
160/5 (45 overs) Imam-ul-Haq 74* (121) Tim Murtagh 2/55 (16 overs)		339 (129.3 overs) (f/o) Kevin O'Brien 118 (217) Mohammad Abbas 5/66 (28.3 overs)

Pakistan won by 5 wickets The Village, Malahide Umpires: Richard Illingworth (Eng) and Nigel Llong (Eng) Player of the match: Kevin O'Brien (Ire)

• Ireland won the toss and elected to field.

Ireland played England in a four-day Test match at Lord's in July 2019:

24-27 July 2019[d] Scorecard

England	v	Ireland
85 (23.4 overs) Joe Denly 23 (28) Tim Murtagh 5/13 (9 overs)		207 (58.2 overs) Andrew Balbirnie 55 (69) Sam Curran 3/28 (10 overs)
303 (77.5 overs) Jack Leach 92 (162) Stuart Thompson 3/44 (12.5 overs)		38 (15.4 overs) James McCollum 11 (17) Chris Woakes 6/17 (7.4 overs)

England won by 143 runs Lord's, London Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pak) and Ruchira Palliyaguruge (SL) Player of the match: Jack Leach (Eng)

• England won the toss and elected to bat
• Jason Roy, Olly Stone (Eng) and Mark Adair (Ire) all made their Test debuts.
• Boyd Rankin (Ire) became the first cricketer since the Nawab of Pataudi in 1946 to play for and against England in Tests.^[97]
• Tim Murtagh took the first five-wicket haul by a bowler for Ireland in Tests.^[98]
• England's first innings was their shortest in a Test match at home, in terms of overs.^[99]
• Jonny Bairstow (Eng) and Gary Wilson (Ire) failed to score any runs in the match. It was the first instance of both designated wicket-keepers being dismissed for a pair in a completed Test.^[100]
• Ireland's second innings total was the lowest in Tests at Lord's, the seventh-lowest in Test cricket, and the lowest since South Africa were dismissed for 36 runs in the first innings of the fifth Test in Melbourne in 1932.^[101]

In October 2019, Andrew Balbirnie was appointed Test and ODI captain and one month later, in November he also took over the captaincy of T20I from Gary Wilson, thus becoming all format captain for Ireland.^[102]

On 16 January 2022, Ireland claimed their first away ODI series win over a fellow Test nation by beating the West Indies by two wickets at Sabina Park in Jamaica.^[103] On 31 March 2023, Ireland claimed their first win against Bangladesh on Bangladeshi soil in the third match of their T20 three match series.^[104] Ireland achieved their first-ever series win in Zimbabwe, after winning a three-match series 2-1 in December 2023.^[105] The following week they followed up their T20 success with a 2-0 one-day international series victory, which was their first ODI series win in Zimbabwe.^[106]

After losing their first seven tests, on 1 March 2024 Ireland won their first test defeating Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi by six wickets.^[107]

28 Feb - 01 March 2024[d] Scorecard

Afghanistan	v	Ireland
155 (54.5 overs) Ibrahim Zadran 53 (83) Mark Adair 5/39 (16.5 overs)		263 (83.4 overs) Paul Stirling 52 (89) Zia-ur-Rehman 5/64 (30 overs)
218 (75.4 overs) Hashmatullah Shahidi 55 (107) Craig Young 3/24 (10.4 overs)		111/4 (31.3 overs) Andy Balbirnie 58* (96) Naveed Zadran 2/31 (9.3 overs)

Ireland won by 6 wickets Tolerance Oval, Abu Dhabi Umpires: Adrian Holdstock (SAF) and Richard Kettleborough (ENG) Player of the match: Mark Adair (IRE)

• Afghanistan won the toss and elected to bat
• Barry McCarthy, Craig Young, Theo van Woerkom (Ire) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Afg) all made their Test debuts.

A couple months after their first test victory, Ireland secured their first T20 victory over Pakistan in two attempts, winning by five wickets with one ball remaining.^[108] In July 2024 Ireland beat Zimbabwe by four wickets at Stormont and recorded a second consecutive Test victory and a first on home soil.^[109] In September 2024 Ross Adair's maiden century powered Ireland to their first T20 win over South Africa to share the series 1-1.^[110] Ireland followed this up with a 69-run victory over South Africa in the final match of their ODI series, their second ever victory over South Africa in the ODI format.^[111]

Bready Club

Castle Avenue

Stormont

The Village

class=notpageimage|

Locations of all stadiums which have hosted an international cricket match within Ireland

The Irish Cricket Union (ICU) – the governing body of Irish cricket – was officially founded in 1923, although its predecessor had been active since 1890.^[26]

In common with a number of other Ireland sporting governing bodies, the Union was formed to represent cricket throughout the island of Ireland, rather than just the Republic of Ireland. In common with its counterparts for rugby union, rugby league and field hockey, the Union therefore does not use the Irish tricolor, but instead employs its own flag, which is used by such bodies as the International Cricket Council to represent the team and in ICC tournaments; "Ireland's Call" is used as the national anthem.^[121][122]

In 2007, the ICU announced major changes to bring it into line with the main cricket governing bodies.^{[what were they?][123]} After the World Cup, Irish cricket had poor results in the 2007 Friends Provident Trophy, as many players were unavailable. The Irish cricket team was an amateur side and most of the players had full-time jobs with commitments conflicting with cricket.^[54]

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the ICU, has stated that it wants to "seek actively to place Irish players into top-level cricket, by developing relationships with [especially] county cricket which will incorporate appropriate player release for Irish international duty, and feeder systems for developing Irish cricketers".^[123] The reorganised ICU sought closer links with the English county teams, to encourage the development of age group cricket, and to introduce a professional element into the Irish game. They also want to take the Ireland cricket team on winter tours more often.^[123]

In an attempt to prevent the game losing players to counties or other commitments such as jobs, it was suggested that central contracts should be introduced.^[124] This was done in June 2009, with the first two going to Trent Johnston and Alex Cusack.^[73] The number of full-time contracts was expanded to six in January 2010 with support for a further nine players; the contracts were split into three categories.^[125][126] In January 2012 the number of contracts was increased to 23, and coach Phil Simmons highlighted the process of becoming professional as an important factor in the team's success.^[127]

In Test matches, Ireland wears cricket whites, with the optional sweater or vest with a green v-neck with the Cricket Ireland logo on the centre. The shirts feature the Cricket Ireland logo on the right breast, the manufacturer logo on the sleeve and the sponsor logo on the left breast. The fielders wear a navy blue cricket cap or a white sunhat with the Cricket Ireland logo. The batsman helmets are coloured similarly.

In limited-overs cricket, Ireland wears an emerald green (in ODI) or lawn green (in T20) uniform with dark blue and white accents and feature the Cricket Ireland logo on the right breast, the sponsor logo on the centre and the manufacturer logo on the left breast. The fielders wear a dark blue baseball-style cap or sunhat.

Dark blue, sometimes referred to as 'presidential blue', taken from both the Irish Presidential seal and the Irish quarter of the British Royal coat of arms, is historically considered a secondary national colour of Ireland, and frequently appears along with green on the kit of all-island teams e.g. hockey and rugby union.

In ICC-regulated tournaments, the sponsor logo goes to the non-leading arm sleeve, making space for the inscription "IRELAND" written in white, on the centre section of the shirt.

The current kit supplier is Macron, who signed a four-year deal in April 2023.^[128]

World Cup record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	L	T	NR
1975	Not eligible
1979
1983
1987
1992
1996	Did not qualify
1999
2003
2007	Super 8	8/16	9	2	6	1	0
2011	Group Stage	11/14	6	2	4	0	0
2015		9/14	6	3	3	0	0
2019	Did not qualify
2023
2027	TBD
2031
Total	Super 8 (2007)	3/12	21	7	13	1	0

T20 World Cup record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	L	T	NR
2007	Did not qualify
2009	Super 8	8/12	5	1	4	0	0
2010	Group stage	9/12	2	0	1	0	1
2012			2	0	1	0	1
2014		13/16	3	2	1	0	0
2016		15/16	3	0	2	0	1
2021		14/16	3	1	2	0	0
2022	Second round	10/16	8	3	4	0	1
2024	Group stage	18/20	4	0	3	0	1
2026	TBD
2028
2030	Qualified as co-hosts
Total	Super 8 (2009)	8/9	29	7	17	0	4

‡ Only the matches between Scotland, Ireland and the Netherlands in the 2006 tournament have official ODI status.

Result summary
Year	Position	GP	W	L	T	NR
2018	3/3	4	1	2	1	0
2019	1/3	4	2	1	0	1
Total		8	3	3	1	1

Result summary
Year	Position	GP	W	L	T	NR
2017	3/3	4	0	3	0	1
2019	3/3	4	0	3	0	1
Total		8	0	6	0	2

Result summary
Year	Position	GP	W	L	T	NR
2022	2/4	3	2	1	0	0
Total		3	2	1	0	0

This lists all the active players who have played for Ireland in the past year (since 1 June 2023) and the forms in which they have played, or any players (in italics) outside this criterion who have been selected in the team's most recent squad. In addition, it includes all players contracted by Cricket Ireland in March 2023.^[129]

Key

• S/N = Shirt number
• C/G = Contract grade
• F/T = Full-time contract
• C = Casual contract
• E = Education contract

S/N	Name	Age	Batting style	Bowling style	Domestic team	C/G[129]	Last Match played[e]			Captaincy
Batters
1	Paul Stirling	34	Right-handed	Right-arm off-break	Northern Knights	F/T	2024	2024	2024	ODI, T20I (C) & Test (VC)
15	Ross Adair	30	Right-handed	—	Northern Knights	F/T			2024
63	Andrew Balbirnie	33	Right-handed	Right-arm off-break	Leinster Lightning	F/T	2024	2024	2024	Test (C)
7	James McCollum	29	Right-handed	—	Northern Knights	F/T	2023	2021
13	Harry Tector	24	Right-handed	Right-arm off-break	Leinster Lightning	F/T	2024	2024	2024
Wicket-keepers
10	Peter Moor	33	Right-handed	—	Munster Reds	F/T	2024
20	Stephen Doheny	26	Right-handed	—	North West Warriors	F/T		2024	2022
5	Neil Rock	24	Left-handed	—	Northern Knights	F/T			2024
3	Lorcan Tucker	28	Right-handed	—	Leinster Lightning	F/T	2024	2024	2024	ODI, T20I (VC)
All-rounders
85	Curtis Campher	25	Right-handed	Right-arm medium-fast	Munster Reds	F/T	2024	2024	2024
64	Gareth Delany	27	Right-handed	Right-arm leg-break	Munster Reds	F/T		2023	2024
50	George Dockrell	32	Right-handed	Slow left-arm orthodox	Leinster Lightning	F/T	2023	2024	2024
Pace bowlers
32	Mark Adair	28	Right-handed	Right-arm medium-fast	Northern Knights	F/T	2024	2024	2024
—	Matthew Foster	24	Left-handed	Right-arm medium-fast	Northern Knights	F/T
71	Fionn Hand	26	Right-handed	Right-arm medium	Leinster Lightning	F/T	2023	2024	2024
41	Graham Hume	34	Left-handed	Right-arm medium	North West Warriors	F/T	2023	2024	2024
82	Josh Little	25	Right-handed	Left-arm fast-medium	Leinster Lightning	F/T		2023	2024
—	Thomas Mayes	23	Right-handed	Right-arm medium-fast	Northern Knights	R/T
60	Barry McCarthy	32	Right-handed	Right-arm fast-medium	Leinster Lightning	F/T	2024	2024	2024
—	Liam McCarthy	23	Right-handed	Right-arm fast-medium	Munster Reds	R/T
44	Craig Young	34	Right-handed	Right-arm fast-medium	North West Warriors	F/T	2024	2024	2024
Spin bowlers
11	Matthew Humphreys	22	Right-handed	Slow left-arm orthodox	Northern Knights	R/T	2024	2024	2024
59	Gavin Hoey	23	Right-handed	Right-arm leg-break	Leinster Lightning	R/T		2024
35	Andy McBrine	31	Left-handed	Right-arm off-break	North West Warriors	F/T	2024	2024	2022
86	Ben White	26	Right-handed	Right-arm leg-break	Northern Knights	F/T	2023	2023	2024

Position	Name
High performance director	Richard Holdsworth
Head coach	Heinrich Malan
Batting and wicketkeeping coach	Gary Wilson
Pace bowling coach	Ryan Eagleson
Spin bowling coach	Chris Brown
Fielding coach	Andrew Withe
Sources:[130][131]

• 1995–1999: Mike Hendrick
• 1999–2001: Ken Rutherford
• 2002–2007: Adrian Birrell
• 2007–2015: Phil Simmons
• 2015–2017: John Bracewell
• 2017–2021: Graham Ford
• 2021–2022: David Ripley (interim)
• 2022–present: Heinrich Malan

International match summary – Ireland^{[132][133][134]}

Last updated 7 October 2024.

• Highest team score: 492 v. Sri Lanka, 24 April at Galle International Stadium, Galle.^[135]
• Best innings bowling: 6/118, Andy McBrine v. Bangladesh on 4 April 2023 at Sylhet International Cricket Stadium, Sylhet.^[136]
• Record individual score: 118, Kevin O'Brien v. Pakistan on 11 May 2018 at The Village, Malahide.^[137]

• Bold – still playing for Ireland

Test record versus other nations^[132]

Opponent	Matches	Won	Lost	Draw	Tied	First win
Afghanistan	2	1	1	0	0	1 March 2024
Bangladesh	1	0	1	0	0
England	2	0	2	0	0
Pakistan	1	0	1	0	0
Sri Lanka	2	0	2	0	0
Zimbabwe	1	1	0	0	0	28 July 2024

Records complete to Test #2540. Last updated 28 July 2024.

• Highest team score: 359/9 v. New Zealand, 15 July 2022 at Malahide, Dublin.^[140]
• Best innings bowling: 6/55, Paul Stirling v. Afghanistan on 17 March 2017 at Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground, Greater Noida.^[141]
• Record partnership score: 227 by William Porterfield & Kevin O'Brien v. Kenya, Nairobi, 2 February 2007^[142]

Highest ODI scores for Ireland^[145]

• Bold – still playing for Ireland

ODI record versus other nations^[133]

Opponent	M	W	L	T	NR	First win
v. Full members
Afghanistan	32	13	18	0	1	3 July 2010
Australia	5	0	4	0	1
Bangladesh	16	2	11	0	3	15 April 2007
England	15	2	11	0	2	2 March 2011
India	3	0	3	0	0
New Zealand	7	0	7	0	0
Pakistan	7	1	5	1	0	17 March 2007
South Africa	11	2	8	0	1	13 July 2021
Sri Lanka	5	0	5	0	0
West Indies	15	3	11	0	1	16 February 2015
Zimbabwe	22	10	8	1	3	30 September 2010
v. Associate Members
Bermuda	1	1	0	0	0	31 January 2007
Canada	8	6	2	0	0	6 April 2009
Kenya	10	7	2	0	1	24 August 2008
Nepal	1	1	0	0	0	4 July 2023
Netherlands	13	8	3	1	1	11 July 2007
Oman	1	0	1	0	0
Papua New Guinea	1	1	0	0	0	6 March 2018
Scotland	21	15	5	0	1	5 August 2006
United Arab Emirates	9	8	1	0	0	25 February 2015
United States	1	1	0	0	0	30 June 2023

Records complete to ODI #4782. Last updated 7 October 2024.

• Highest team score: 226/4 v. Austria, 23 July 2023 at The Grange Club, Edinburgh^[146]
• Best innings bowling: 4/11, Alex Cusack v. West Indies, 21 February 2014 at Sabina Park, Jamaica^[147]

• Bold – still playing for Ireland

T20I record versus other nations^[134]

Opponent	M	W	L	T	NR	First win
v. Full members
Afghanistan	27	7	18	1	1	1 February 2010
Australia	2	0	2	0	0
Bangladesh	8	2	5	0	1	8 June 2009
England	2	1	0	0	1	26 October 2022
India	8	0	8	0	0
New Zealand	5	0	5	0	0
Pakistan	5	1	4	0	0	10 May 2024
South Africa	7	1	6	0	0	29 September 2024
Sri Lanka	3	0	3	0	0
West Indies	8	3	3	0	2	19 February 2014
Zimbabwe	15	8	7	0	0	17 March 2014
v. Associate Members
Austria	1	1	0	0	0	23 July 2023
Bahrain	1	1	0	0	0	19 February 2022
Bermuda	1	1	0	0	0	3 August 2008
Canada	5	2	3	0	0	22 March 2012
Denmark	1	1	0	0	0	21 July 2023
Germany	1	1	0	0	0	21 February 2022
Hong Kong	4	2	2	0	0	7 October 2019
Italy	1	1	0	0	0	20 July 2023
Jersey	2	2	0	0	0	25 October 2019
Kenya	5	5	0	0	0	4 August 2008
Namibia	2	1	1	0	0	2 November 2019
Nepal	3	3	0	0	0	13 July 2015
Netherlands	15	7	7	0	1	13 February 2010
Nigeria	1	1	0	0	0	26 October 2019
Oman	6	4	2	0	0	13 February 2019
Papua New Guinea	4	2	2	0	0	12 October 2021
Scotland	16	9	4	1	2	2 August 2008
United Arab Emirates	11	4	7	0	0	19 March 2014
United States	2	1	1	0	0	23 December 2021

Records complete to T20I #2876. Last updated 29 September 2024.

• Highest team total: 589/7 declared v. UAE, 13 March 2013, ICC Intercontinental Cup match at Sharjah, UAE^[151]

Most First-class runs^[152]

Most First-class wickets^[153]

Highest individual innings^[154]

Best bowling in an innings^[155]

Note: Ivan Anderson's 198* v. Canada was in a non-first-class match

• Cricket in Ireland
• Irish national cricket captains
• Ireland under-19 cricket team
• Irish women's cricket team
• List of Ireland ODI cricketers
• List of Ireland T20I cricketers
• List of Ireland Twenty20 International records

• Official website of Ireland cricket team
• Cricket Europe Ireland Page