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PREVIEW: Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier – All you need to know

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OMAN – The Ireland Men’s cricket team is in Muscat, Oman, and is set to play in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier starting on 18 February 2022. This do-or-die tournament will see two sides progress through to the T20 World Cup in Australia in October. Here’s what you need to know.
Ireland Men’s squad has been in Oman since 4 February and played a warm-up quadrangular T20 series over the last week, winning two matches (against Nepal and Oman) and losing one match (against UAE).

With this high stakes Qualifier starting imminently, here is what you need to know about the upcoming tournament.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier A will take place between 18-24 February 2022. The top two teams from this Qualifier event progress to the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia in October-November 2022.

You can visit the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier Hub here.

The fixtures for Ireland in the Qualifier Group Stage are:

• 18 February: Ireland Men v UAE Men (2pm start, local time; Academy Oval 1)
• 19 February: Ireland Men v Bahrain Men (2pm start, local time; Academy Oval 2)
• 21 February: Ireland Men v Germany Men (10am start, local time; Academy Oval 1)

Top two teams from each Group progress to a semi-final, with the two winners of the semi’s qualifying for the T20 World Cup.

Image: Ireland Men training in Oman

Ireland – favourites?

Ireland, touted by many as favourites for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier A, begins their campaign against the UAE, at the Oman Academy ground in Al Amerat, on Friday.

Besides Ireland, seven other nations – Nepal, UAE, Canada, Germany, Philippines, Bahrain, and hosts Oman – will vie for the two spots at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 available at the Qualifier A from 18 to 24 February.

Ahead of the qualifier, Ireland skipper Andrew Balbirnie expressed optimism that his team would make it to the Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.

Balbirnie admitted that his side deserved to play the Qualifiers after their performance during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2021:

“We have been pretty inconsistent and deserved to be here. But we know that when we play well, we can beat any team. The short and sharp format of the game leaves less scope for complacency. There are not many occasions when we get the favourite tag. So, I am happy to have it. Usually, it has been the other way round when we, as underdogs, have upset some of the top teams.”

Ireland have qualified for six of the last seven editions of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, and Balbirnie agreed the pressure is on:

“We had learnt our lessons during the previous Men’s T20 World Cups, and we can’t take any team for granted. We have to be on our toes all through the tournament. We know how big these next few days will be and, hopefully, our experience will stand in good stead. We want to take each game as it come but we hope to make it to Australia.”

Ireland are clubbed with UAE, Bahrain and Germany in Group B and the Irish batter addedL

“It was great to see teams like Germany, Philippines [Group A], Bahrain reaching at this stage. The T20 game is getting more competitive day by day and we expect some exciting matches ahead.”

Ireland Men’s T20 squad

The squad consists of 14-players, with two additional travelling reserves as part of the COVID protocols.

Ireland Men’s squad:
Andrew Balbirnie (c), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Shane Getkate, Josh Little, Andy McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young.

Travelling reserves:
Neil Rock, Ben White