Joshua Little
Joshua Little Credits: Twitter

Cricket Ireland has named a  strong 14-member squad for the all-important ODI series against Bangladesh starting on May 9 in Chelmsford. Ireland has included their star pacer Joshua Little in the squad, who is currently part of defending champions Gujarat Titans in IPL 2023.

Ireland pacer Craig Young makes it into the squad after a long injury lay-off, which ruled him out of the 2022 T20 World Cup. It becomes pertinent to mention that Ireland team performed exceptionally well in the mega tournament. The three-match series is very important for the Ireland team, as they can qualify directly for ODI World Cup later this year if they can whitewash the visiting team Bangladesh.

“The three-match ODI series between Ireland Men and Bangladesh Men are the last fixtures in the ICC World Cup Super League and offers Ireland a potential automatic qualification spot in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 if the Men in Green can win all three matches. Bangladesh has already qualified for the global tournament,” Ireland Cricket said in a statement.

Ireland Cricket is looking to put the best team for their clash against Bangladesh to give them a good opportunity to qualify 2023 ODI World Cup. Hosts India and 7 different teams will straight away qualify for the tournament. However, two teams will get their tickets through a qualifier competition in Zimbabwe scheduled in June and July.

Earlier, South Africa played with a full squad against the Netherlands to give them the best chance to qualify for the World Cup and they currently have 98 points owing to the ODI Super League table. Ireland would like to deliver by winning three matches against Bangladesh, as they have overall 68 points.

We Are Pleased To Have The Services Of Joshua Little – Andrew White

Joshua Little is now expected to miss a few games for the defending champions–and may leave India following the Titans’ match against Rajasthan Royals on May 5. In 2022, Joshua Little has made his name known in international cricket as a lethal and talented bowler. Last year, he played in 26 T20Is and recorded 39 wickets at an efficient economy of 7.58.
Ireland Cricket Team
Ireland Cricket Team Credits: Twitter
Joshua Little could not make an impact in the league so far and has snared only 3 wickets from four games for Gujarat Titans with an economy rate of over nine runs an over.
“We are pleased to also have the services of Joshua Little who has been playing in the IPL over the last month. After a tough tour to Bangladesh last month, the lads will be keen to show their talent and skills in more familiar conditions – and with potential world cup qualification on the line, they will need no additional motivation to succeed,” he added.
Ireland squad for 3-match ODI series: Andrew Balbirnie (captain), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Fionn Hand, Graham Hume, Joshua Little, Andy McBrine, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker and Craig Young