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Ireland's men's cricket team is scheduled to tour Namibia, keeping an eye on the 2027 ODI World Cup. Ireland has never played a bilateral ODI match with Namibia before, but they are scheduled for the tour as the next ODI World Cup will be jointly hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.
But before that, Ireland needs to secure their place in the flagship tournament, after missing out on the previous two editions. As of now, the Ireland cricket team's focus is on next year's World Cup Qualifier.
Ireland to play 2027 ODI World Cup Qualifier
The team will travel to South Africa and Namibia in February-March next year for the 10-team Qualifier. There are still four spots left in the 2027 ODI World Cup; Ireland will try to confirm one of the remaining spots.
While the main squad will tour to Namibia for 5 ODIs, their reserve team, Wolves, will play two four-day matches and five one-dayers against Zimbabwe A. There are not too many changes in the main and Wolves teams. The bilaterals aim to prepare a set of players for the Qualifiers. Going forward, if the team confirms a berth in the main event, then the preparations can prove useful for them.
Matthew Humphreys returns for ODIs
Graeme West, Ireland's high-performance director,r explained in a statement that the purpose of thetour iss to help their players to get accustomed to the conditions and some of their potential opponents. As the upcoming matches are crucial to keep their chances alive in the 2027 World Cup, the Irish cricket board has tried its best to pick only the best talents for both senior and Wolves sides.
"The tours provide great opportunities for our players to familiarise themselves with the conditions and some of their potential opponents," Graeme West said in a statement.
"The squads selected for the senior men's and Wolves tours feature the best of Irish men's current and emerging talent, and the chance for such a large cohort of players getting away during the winter months to play outdoors on grass in warmer conditions is a welcome one", he added.
Ireland mostly keeps the same squad that featured in the home series against Afghanistan. Afghanistan defeated the home team by 4-0 in the ODI series. In a slight change, the cricket board has named left-arm spinner Matthew Humphreys, who has not played an ODI since February 2025, in the newly selected team.
Ireland men's bound for Africa
Ireland men tour to Namibia:
Squad: Mark Adair, Andrew Balbirnie, Ben Calitz, Curtis Campher, Cade Carmichael, George Dockrell, Gavin Hoey, Matthew Humphreys, Andy McBrine, Liam McCarthy, Byron McDonough, Jai Moondra, Jordan Neill, Paul Stirling (captain), Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (vice-captain/wk)
Ireland's ODI series:
Fixtures: October 22 - 1st ODI
October 24 - 2nd ODI
October 27 - 3rd ODI
October 30 - 4th ODI
November 1 - 5th ODI
All matches will be played in Windhoek.
Ireland Wolves tour of Zimbabwe
6-9 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (Four-day match)
13-16 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (Four-day match)
19 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (1st One Day)
21 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (2nd One Day)
23 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (3rd One Day)
26 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (4th One Day)
28 November: Ireland Wolves v Zimbabwe A (5th One Day)
Ireland Wolves’ squad for Zimbabwe (Red-ball matches):
Jake Egan, Stephen Doheny, Cade Carmichael, Chris Defreitas, Tim Tector, Ben Calitz, Mark Adair, Jordan Neill, Gavin Hoey, Matthew Humphreys, Liam McCarthy, Jai Moondra, Byron McDonough, Matthew Hollard, Reuben Wilson.
Ireland Wolves’ squad for Zimbabwe (White-ball matches):
Stephen Doheny, Tim Tector, Cade Carmichael, Chris Defreitas, Ben Calitz, Gareth Delany, David Delany, Jordan Neill, Gavin Hoey, Matthew Humphreys, Liam McCarthy, Jai Moondra, Byron McDonough, Matthew Hollard, Josh Little.
