Ireland to play FIRST TEST Against Pakistan

Ireland Cricket has finally reached the promised land – maiden test match.

11 years after the Ireland Cricket Team announced themselves at the ICC 2007 World Cup, caused a few upsets and gained the admiration of cricket lovers all around the world, the team is all set to make their Test debut. Having received their test status from ICC last year, May 2018 was the date set for their first ever test match, and here we are!

The Pakistan Cricket Team has been in the UK since over a week now, preparing for their tour of England, and this test against Ireland will not just be a warm up for the touring side, but it will mark a very significant moment in Ireland’s history. 11th May 2018 will mark a historic day, as the Ireland cricketers will walk out to represent their country in their first ever test match.

Associate nations like Ireland don’t get a lot of opportunities to play cricket at the international level, and a lot of serious talent goes unnoticed. They will not be looking to just go out and play, but they will be looking to play hard make a huge statement in international cricket, led by left handed opening batsman and long time captain, William Porterfield.

Ireland have gone through a lot of pain over the decades, where playing ‘foreign’ sports was a crime you could get into serious trouble for. This match will means loads to them, but they will need to be smart on debut. A good performance could prompt a revised cricketing calendar with more touring sides while a bad show could lead to another 1-2 years or even longer before they get a chance to play another top test nation.

Pakistan drew their warm up game against Kent and won their game against Northamptonshire by 9 wickets, so they aren’t looking too bad. Remember, they will love conditions here as they won the ICC Champions Trophy in England last year. Ireland will be pumped up but they will have to be on top of their game, or else the Pakistani bowlers will be all over them like a rash.

Ed Joyce is one in particular who will cherish this moment. Few months short of his 40th birthday, he has played for England in limited overs in the past but will now proudly walk out to be a part of the first Ireland test team. His sister Isobel Joyce scooped up that honour nearly two decades ago as well. Yes, this isn’t the first time Ireland will be playing test cricket as the women’s team first played a test against Pakistan 18 years ago. Bet you didn’t know that!

Pakistan Test Team:

Imam-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Haris Sohail, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfraz Ahmed (c, wk), Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Amir, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Abbas.

Ireland Test Squad:

William Porterfield (c), Andy Balbirnie, Ed Joyce, Tyrone Kane, Andy McBrine, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, James Shannon, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Gary Wilson (wk), Craig Young.

The match will take place at the Malahide Cricket Club in Dublin and a forecast that says 80% chance of rain could be a dampener on this special event for Ireland. We’ve seen a few other international games get washed out here but we will be keeping our hopes up. Keep reading ReadScoops.com for all updates on the game.

Pakistan Test Team:

Ireland Test Squad:

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