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BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe – Ireland Men’s batter Harry Tector spoke from the team hotel as the senior men’s Test squad prepare for their upcoming one-off Test against Zimbabwe which will also be a tenth Test match for the side. 

Tector, 25, who is currently sixth in the ICC Men’s ODI batting rankings, played in Ireland Men’s first-ever Test win last year against Afghanistan and then in their next Test match last July when they beat Zimbabwe in Stormont, Belfast.

He gave his thoughts on how preparation for the Test match had been going:

“The training camp was very good. We were able to get through a lot and mainly it was about facing bowlers off their full run ups again and sort of getting back into the rhythm of batting – which was great.”

What sort of conditions are they expecting for the Test match?

“Yeah, very familiar with Zimbabwe. I think this is my fourth or fifth time here, but only my second time playing in Bulawayo so it’s hard to really know what they’re going to do with the wicket. Obviously you can look into what happened in the recent series Zimbabwe played here against Afghanistan. We’ll have a good look at the wicket tomorrow and then try and create a game plan around how you think it might go. But I’ll probably start looking into that a bit more over the next day or two. It’s definitely going to be hot, so we’re preparing for that.”

On feeling comfortable playing Test cricket as a format…

“I don’t think you ever feel fully comfortable, or I certainly don’t, playing any format. But I’m definitely more used to it and becoming more used to it. There’s the flow of it. I think the thing you have to adapt to the most particularly as a batter is the concept of time and how much time you have. That’s something that I’m looking to improve on. Because with the amount of white ball cricket we play you do feel you have to move the game along. But in Test cricket sometimes you can absorb pressure and then there are periods where you can add pressure. So that’s probably the thing I’m trying to learn and adapt to quickly.”

On the importance of Test cricket from a player’s perspective…

“It’s hugely important for the development to your game. I think the format gives you so much time to learn on the go, improve and develop different strategies and techniques to different kinds of bowling whether it’s spin, seam or pace. So it’s hugely important for the development of my batting.”

On Harry Tector as a player who debuted in 2019 verses Harry Tector now…

“Sometimes I wish I played like 2019 Harry Tector because I didn’t really know much. So you have no fears or sometimes scars with the way you play. The more you play the more you sometimes know. So I’m still trying to play with that freedom and fearless approach sometimes. But then trying to apply the experience that I’ve garnered over the last five or six years. I guess the advice I would probably give to someone would be belief. I think the biggest thing for me was believing in myself early on that I was good enough to play at this level even when I probably wasn’t. I think that really helped me so when I did eventually play I felt like I could succeed at this level and that’s not something you can tell everyone. So you’ve got to believe in yourself.”

TEST SQUAD

• Andrew Balbirnie (c) (Pembroke / Leinster Lightning), Mark Adair (Lisburn / Northern Knights), Curtis Campher (Clontarf / Munster Reds), Gavin Hoey (Pembroke / Leinster Lightning), Graham Hume (Waringstown / North West Warriors), Matthew Humphreys (Lisburn / Northern Knights), Andrew McBrine (Donemana / North West Warriors), Barry McCarthy (Pembroke / Leinster Lightning), PJ Moor (Clontarf / Munster Reds), Paul Stirling (Northern Knights), Harry Tector (Pembroke / Leinster Lightning), Morgan Topping (Waringstown / Northern Knights), Lorcan Tucker (Pembroke / Leinster Lightning), Craig Young (North Down / North West Warriors)

WHERE TO FOLLOW

• Livescoring: visit our Match Centre
• Broadcast: Full info on the match broadcast will shortly be provided by Zimbabwe Cricket