IRE vs ZIM Match Prediction– One-Off Test, Zimbabwe tour of Ireland 2024

The IRE vs ZIM One-Off Test match will be played from July 25-19 in Belfast's Civil Service Cricket Club. The match starts at 3.15 pm IST. This is the first Test match between both sides. The two teams so far have played 22 ODIs and 15 T20I matches.

IRE vs ZIM Team Analysis

Ireland

Ireland is led by Andrew Balbirnie. They lost their last Test series against Bangladesh recently before the T20 World Cup. Ireland attained Test status in 2018 and has played against Teams like Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, and Afghanistan. They have yet to play against teams like India and Australia.

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe has been playing Test cricket since 1992. They made their Test debut against India back in the 90s but are still not competitive in the format. Overall, they have played 117 Test matches winning 13 and losing as many as 75 matches in the format. Zimbabwe lost recently to West Indies 1-0.

IRE vs ZIM Key Factors

Pitch Conditions

So far the venue has not hosted Test cricket. It will be interesting to see what kind of pitch is prepared. The team batting first should look to post a score of 300 and beyond to make an impact in the Test match.

The curators should leave some on the pitch for all three disciplines of the game. The temperatures will be between 19-21 degrees which means that conditions will be moist and cold enough for the players.

Form And Fitness

There are no fitness or injury concerns from either camp. Zimbabwe recently played a T20I series against India while Ireland last participated in the T20 World Cup 2022.

Tactical Acumen

Given the weather conditions are not in favor of the teams, the tactical decision of the teams might depend on how the weather behaves. There is a lot of rain expected across the duration of the Test match. The changing conditions might dictate the thought process of the captains as well.

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IRE vs ZIM Score Prediction

Recent Venue Records (Civil Service Cricket Club, Belfast)

The two teams are yet to play a Test match against each other after playing against each other in white-ball formats. The expected performers in the game are listed below. Also Belfast has hosted ODIs and T20Is until now, this is the very first Test match to be played at this venue.

Who Will Score Most Runs For Zimbabwe: Craig Ervine / Johnathan Campbell

Who Will Take Most Wickets For Zimbabwe: Tendai Chatara / Richard Ngarava

Who Will Score Most Runs For Ireland: Andrew Balbirnie / Harry Tector

Who Will Take Most Wickets For Ireland: Mark Adair / Barry McCarthy

IRE vs ZIM Match Prediction– One-Off Test, Zimbabwe tour of Ireland 2024

Zimbabwe are fresh off a competitive performance against India at home and they are likely to give tough competition to the home team.

However, considering the current form of Ireland in Red Ball cricket and also home conditions, the hosts will start as favorites for the One-off Test.

Conclusion

This is hopefully the first of many Test matches between the two countries. They have played coms closely contested games in the white-ball format and it is now time to show their might in Test cricket. Zimbabwe is ranked 10th in the ICC Test rankings while Ireland is 11th.

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