Team Preview | ICC U-19 Women's T20 World Cup | Ireland
Written By: Jeet Vachharajani & Ritwika Dhar
Date: 15-01-2023
Picture Courtesy: Cricket Queens
Ireland has always been a very young side even at the senior level after the likes of the Joyce sisters, Clare Shillington, Ciara Metcalfe, etc. retired. Being a young side, it always takes time to hit that 'full bloom' phase, and when you do, you become a very competitive side. One requires patience when a young side takes the field and irrespective of the results they get, you've got to keep backing and encouraging them.
This backing is now taking effect for the senior side. We are slowly starting to see the senior side full of youngsters transforming into a force with some famous wins recently. This U-19 batch is the next generation of Irish cricketers who would be soon seen in the senior side.
FIXTURES:
Ireland is in Group C and will be up against the West Indies, New Zealand, & Indonesia.
SQUAD:
The Irish squad has 2 players who have represented the senior side and share a total of 42 caps - Amy Hunter (24) & Georgina Dempsey (18).
RECENT FORM:
Being a full-member nation, Ireland automatically qualified for the inaugural ICC U-19 Women's T20 World Cup. Earlier this year, the Irish Cricket Board announced two Youth tours for the Ireland U-15 and U-17 girls who toured the Netherlands. Most of the players have been selected from these two tours.
PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
Georgina Dempsey - Dempsey has international experience and that always comes in handy to have an upper hand. She is a promising pacer who can bat & will be spearheading the Irish pace attack and taking the new ball. She has endured a little tough time on the international circuit, but it has all been a part of the learning curve. One must not forget that the talented bowler has dismissed the likes of Alyssa Healy & Tahlia McGrath. There are bound to be early wickets taken for Ireland & it's going to be Dempsey who would be one of them providing those wickets.
Amy Hunter - Skipper of the U-19 side came in limelight in 2021 when she scored a century against Zimbabwe to become the youngest player to score an ODI century. The young RHB wicket-keeper averages nearly 33 in the ODIs and 22 in the T20Is, both of which are well above average for such a young player and also accounting for the opponents that she has faced. She is already in that core batting group for the senior side and is going to establish her credibility further in this tournament. She scored 54 runs across the two warm-up games including 41 against Rwanda.
Niamh McNulty - In a team with a lot of all-rounders, Niamh McNulty is another one who could either prove to be a match-winner with the bat or with the ball. Niamh has had a lot of success when representing the Ireland U-15 side and she has proven the true impact that an all-rounder can provide in any format of the game. One of her best games came against Yorkshire A when she scored 45 runs and took 2/5 to play a hand in defeating them. McNulty will play a role in the PP and took 3 wickets across the two warm-up games with mighty impressive returns.
Aimee Maguire - Leinster has a history of producing very good cricketers and Aimee Maguire is all set to add to the list. The all-rounder has been a match-winner for them at the different age groups and also turned on the heat for the Ireland age group with her all-rounder performances. Aimee returned with figures of 2/20 in her 4 overs against Rwanda that included wickets of Gisele & Henriette Ishimwe, two of Rwanda's best batters.
Annabel Squires - The one thing that Annabel Squires knows is to score runs, runs, & runs. She has been scoring a truckload of them for a while and her 35 (37) against the Pakistan attack was proof of that. She churned out runs last year in the Cricket Ireland U-19 tri-series and has been doing the same for Leinster. The good part about these performances is that they prove to be match-winners for the teams that she represents. She got runs in the U-15s, then the U-17s, & now for the U-19s. There have been runs galore with success at all age groups. Her progress has been incredible.
Siuin Woods - Siuin did not have the best of runs in the two warm-ups, but little does it matter to those who know what she has done in the last few years. It's not a surprise anymore for an Irish cricketer to have been involved in some other sport before & Woods is another one of them with experience of playing hockey in Ireland. She was a striker in that sport, and she strikes it well in cricket too. The right-handed opening batter scored 123* (127) last year in July with 10x4s & 2x6s to help guess who (Leinster) win their game against NCU.
PREDICTIONS:
When I see this Irish side, I see match-winners. On any given day, any player can step up and is capable of being a match-winner by themselves with the bat or the ball. Plenty of all-rounders in this side & that will provide enough batting depth and bowling options for Hunter to utilize. Ireland is definitely capable of making it through to the Super 6s & I see a high chance of that.
Team Preview | ICC U-19 Women's T20 World Cup | Ireland
Written By: Jeet Vachharajani & Ritwika Dhar
Date: 15-01-2023
Picture Courtesy: Cricket Queens
Ireland has always been a very young side even at the senior level after the likes of the Joyce sisters, Clare Shillington, Ciara Metcalfe, etc. retired. Being a young side, it always takes time to hit that 'full bloom' phase, and when you do, you become a very competitive side. One requires patience when a young side takes the field and irrespective of the results they get, you've got to keep backing and encouraging them.
This backing is now taking effect for the senior side. We are slowly starting to see the senior side full of youngsters transforming into a force with some famous wins recently. This U-19 batch is the next generation of Irish cricketers who would be soon seen in the senior side.
FIXTURES:
Ireland is in Group C and will be up against the West Indies, New Zealand, & Indonesia.
SQUAD:
The Irish squad has 2 players who have represented the senior side and share a total of 42 caps - Amy Hunter (24) & Georgina Dempsey (18).
RECENT FORM:
Being a full-member nation, Ireland automatically qualified for the inaugural ICC U-19 Women's T20 World Cup. Earlier this year, the Irish Cricket Board announced two Youth tours for the Ireland U-15 and U-17 girls who toured the Netherlands. Most of the players have been selected from these two tours.
PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
Georgina Dempsey - Dempsey has international experience and that always comes in handy to have an upper hand. She is a promising pacer who can bat & will be spearheading the Irish pace attack and taking the new ball. She has endured a little tough time on the international circuit, but it has all been a part of the learning curve. One must not forget that the talented bowler has dismissed the likes of Alyssa Healy & Tahlia McGrath. There are bound to be early wickets taken for Ireland & it's going to be Dempsey who would be one of them providing those wickets.
Amy Hunter - Skipper of the U-19 side came in limelight in 2021 when she scored a century against Zimbabwe to become the youngest player to score an ODI century. The young RHB wicket-keeper averages nearly 33 in the ODIs and 22 in the T20Is, both of which are well above average for such a young player and also accounting for the opponents that she has faced. She is already in that core batting group for the senior side and is going to establish her credibility further in this tournament. She scored 54 runs across the two warm-up games including 41 against Rwanda.
Niamh McNulty - In a team with a lot of all-rounders, Niamh McNulty is another one who could either prove to be a match-winner with the bat or with the ball. Niamh has had a lot of success when representing the Ireland U-15 side and she has proven the true impact that an all-rounder can provide in any format of the game. One of her best games came against Yorkshire A when she scored 45 runs and took 2/5 to play a hand in defeating them. McNulty will play a role in the PP and took 3 wickets across the two warm-up games with mighty impressive returns.
Aimee Maguire - Leinster has a history of producing very good cricketers and Aimee Maguire is all set to add to the list. The all-rounder has been a match-winner for them at the different age groups and also turned on the heat for the Ireland age group with her all-rounder performances. Aimee returned with figures of 2/20 in her 4 overs against Rwanda that included wickets of Gisele & Henriette Ishimwe, two of Rwanda's best batters.
Annabel Squires - The one thing that Annabel Squires knows is to score runs, runs, & runs. She has been scoring a truckload of them for a while and her 35 (37) against the Pakistan attack was proof of that. She churned out runs last year in the Cricket Ireland U-19 tri-series and has been doing the same for Leinster. The good part about these performances is that they prove to be match-winners for the teams that she represents. She got runs in the U-15s, then the U-17s, & now for the U-19s. There have been runs galore with success at all age groups. Her progress has been incredible.
Siuin Woods - Siuin did not have the best of runs in the two warm-ups, but little does it matter to those who know what she has done in the last few years. It's not a surprise anymore for an Irish cricketer to have been involved in some other sport before & Woods is another one of them with experience of playing hockey in Ireland. She was a striker in that sport, and she strikes it well in cricket too. The right-handed opening batter scored 123* (127) last year in July with 10x4s & 2x6s to help guess who (Leinster) win their game against NCU.
PREDICTIONS:
When I see this Irish side, I see match-winners. On any given day, any player can step up and is capable of being a match-winner by themselves with the bat or the ball. Plenty of all-rounders in this side & that will provide enough batting depth and bowling options for Hunter to utilize. Ireland is definitely capable of making it through to the Super 6s & I see a high chance of that.