A Look Back at Ireland vs Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe sport witnessed great excitement in January as the Irish cricket team visited the country for a series of T20 and one day internationals. Both teams kept cricket fans on the edge of their seats as Zimbabwe came out on top in the T20 best of three, which were played on January 12, 14 and 15; whereas in the ODIs, which were played on January 18, 20 and 21, the two teams tied as one of the matches ended in no result. All of these battles between the two teams took place in Harare. Below is a look at some of what went down in these matches, plus a glance at future fixtures.

Ireland take on Zimbabwe

This was the first international action for the teams since . It provided them both with valuable game time for the ODI World Cup qualifier, scheduled for June to July of this year.

Things weren’t looking good for Zimbabwe, who were out of the running for direct qualification for this year’s World Cup in October and November, in India. Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s direct qualification for the World Cup left Ireland duking it out with Sri Lanka, the West Indies and South Africa for the last remaining direct qualification spot.

In terms of ODIs, Ireland and Zimbabwe had already met 16 times. Each team has seven wins to their name. In the most recent, in September 2021, Ireland claimed a 2-1 victory in a series hampered by rain. The remaining matches have been a draw and a no result. As far as T20 internationals have gone, again Ireland have been the more dominant side, with five wins to four, and in the last series between the teams, Ireland took the series 3-2.

What happened in Harare?

There were some . In the T20Is, Zimbabwe had put in a strong bowling effort, with Ryan Burl being the standout performer with 3-29. Former England batter Gary Balance contributed to the Zimbabwe effort with 30 runs. Zimbabwe took the first match by five wickets.

Ireland weren’t going to let Zimbabwe walk all over them, however. Sixty-five from Ross Adair in defence of his wicket was the performance of the day. The Irish would pull back the series to one match apiece by winning by six wickets, but despite their best efforts in the deciding third T20I, they couldn’t stop the hosts from taking the series.

In the ODIs, Zimbabwe clinched the first of the series in nail-biting style. The team needed four off the final ball to win, which they did to seal victory in it. They won by three wickets.

Ireland hit back in the second match and levelled the series in the second day by winning by 46 runs. Stephen Doheny and Harry Tector gave memorable performances, hitting 84 and 75 respectively. Unfortunately, rain made the third and deciding match impossible, so there was no result.

Future matches

In March, Ireland have a series of ODIs against Bangladesh, followed by one of T20s. In April, they switch to a Test match against the Bangladeshis. Ireland may not have quite produced the goods in Africa, but that might not stop you placing a bet on them. For Irish punters who want to place a bet on their national cricket team can now easily do so on their mobile phones . Players such as Andrew Balbirnie and Josh Little have a habit of putting in big performances when their teams need them most.

Bangladesh do have the advantage of being the hosts and will be more accustomed to the conditions of their country than the boys from Ireland, who will be looking to explore the team’s weaknesses. Despite Bangladesh’s balance, bowling prowess and experience in the form of their captain Shakib Al Hasan, the team struggles with pace. They also struggle with power hitting and consistency in hitting. In the final overs, they have no one they can truly count on to rack up big scores. If you’re thinking of laying down some money on Ireland’s visit to Bangladesh, you might feel confident the visitors will come out on top.

Understanding the purpose of cricket tours

Tours may provide a lot of excitement and a chance for their fans to travel and cheer them on, but they do serve a practical purpose. They give the teams a chance to warm up and try out different strategies, different players, etc and see if any changes they’re contemplating might work when played out in matches where qualification or titles are at stake.

Despite their best efforts, Ireland didn’t have the most successful , but now they have Bangladesh to look forward to in March. Ideally, they’ll have learnt from their losses in Zimbabwe and take the lessons from them into Bangladesh when they step out onto the pitch.