Preview: A six-wicket loss in the first ODI against England at Southampton might just spur Ireland to come all guns blazing on Saturday, given that crucial World Cup Super League points are at stake, that is a ticket to entry for the World Cup. This is exactly what this league has done — given context to ODIs, especially for the weaker teams.
Ireland, can by no means be considered a weak team, but somehow haven’t been able to churn out performances that they would have hoped for, after giving a lot of hope. They struggled against a second-string England side and failed to put up a decent show with the bat.
Not that the English side played to their full potential, as the top order looked shaky at the start of their batting. It was only after skipper Eoin Morgan joined forces with Sam Billings, that the home team sealed the deal.
England, coming into the series, have a problem of plenty as far as the white-ball formats are considered. And the captain has already made it clear, that the fringe players will have to come up with something extraordinary to make it to the squad in the future. Though, in what looked like a fresh start, David Willey — who was overlooked for last year’s World Cup winning squad, bagged a fifer, and was instrumental in restricting the opposition under 200.
On the other hand, batting looks like a big concern for the Irish side. At one point they were 28/5 and if not for debutant Curtis Campher, the match would have ended a lot earlier. If a couple of batsmen click for Ireland, they certainly seem to have the mettle to beat this England side.
England Team news:
England batsman Joe Denly has been ruled out of the Royal London Series against Ireland after suffering back spasms in training on Wednesday, a statement on England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) website said. The Kent batsman has been replaced in the 14-man England ODI squad by Lancashire’s Liam Livingstone. Livingstone has represented England in two IT20s and would make his ODI debut if selected in one of the final two matches against Ireland.
Possible Playing XI: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow (wk), James Vince, Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Sam Billings, Tom Banton, Adil Rashid, Tom Curran, David Willey, Reece Topley
Ireland Team news:
Ireland announced their 14-member squad for the second ODI. The squad is as follows: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Paul Stirling (vc), Curtis Campher, Peter Chase, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Kevin O’Brien, William Porterfield, Simi Singh, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young.
Squads:
England squad: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Tom Banton, Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Sam Billings, James Vince, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Joe Denly, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood, Reece Topley, David Willey
Ireland Squad: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Paul Stirling, Gareth Delany, William Porterfield, Harry Tector, Kevin O Brien, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Simi Singh, Mark Adair, Andy McBrine, Joshua Little, Boyd Rankin