Five Ireland players to watch out for in their ODI series against England

The 22-man squad picked by Ireland for their upcoming ODI series against England features eight players under 25, and recent performances in the World T20 qualifiers and against the West Indies suggest the future might be bright for Irish cricket. With that in mind, here are five Ireland players to watch out for in the ODI series starting next week.

Mark Adair

A 24 -year-old bowling all-rounder, Mark Adair has already impressed in games against England, scoring a brisk 32 in an ODI defeat in May 2019, and taking six wickets in his only Test at Lord’s last year, including a three-for to help Tim Murtagh bowl out England for 85. Formerly of Warwickshire, Adair enjoyed good success in the T20 World Cup qualifiers, taking 3-10, 2-10, and 2-9 against relative minnows Jersey, Nigeria, and Namibia. With Murtagh retired, Adair will be key if Ireland are to keep England’s aggressive openers at bay.

Simi Singh

Simi Singh was born in India but has represented Ireland since 2017 and shone in a heart-breakingly tight loss against the West Indies in January, taking 3-44 and marshaling the tail well for 34. The 33-year-old is yet to record an ODI half-century but comes into the series in good touch after making 71 in Ireland’s intra-squad game at the Ageas Bowl. He looks a canny off-spinner too, going at just 3.99 an over in his 18 ODIs to date. Keeping England explosive batting lineup quiet will be a tough test for Singh, but his performance against a West Indies side packed with big-hitters suggests he might cause England problems when the series gets underway next week.

Josh Little

Another player with a history of success against England is left-arm seamer Josh Little. He burst onto the scene as a teenager in 2019 when he took 4-45 against England on debut, reducing them to a wobbly 66-5. Little has played just three ODIs since then and taken only one further single wicket, but he did take 3-29 in a T20I in January, as Ireland beat the West Indies by four runs in a thriller dominated by Paul Stirling’s 95 off 47. Still only 20, Little has been around the Ireland side for four years now and this could be his time to nail down a place with a good run against the world champions.

Harry Tector

Harry Tector is currently uncapped in ODI cricket, but averages 40 in List A cricket across 26 games, including one hundred in Ireland’s 2019 Inter-Provincial cup. The 20-year-old Dubliner comes into the series in good form after a run-a-ball 54 in the warm-up game at Southampton. He is also handy with the ball; his off-breaks topped the wicket charts in Ireland’s List A competition last year, the highlight being 5-36 against North West Warriors last April. With Ireland’s bowlers short on cricket in recent months, a few overs of off-spin from a middle-order bat could be key in keeping Ireland the quicks fresh.

Curtis Campher

Another uncapped squad member is Curtis Campher, who is yet to make a full international appearance in any format. He has impressed for Ireland A though, cracking 62 off 31 against Namibia in February to chase 206 with an over to spare. Born in South Africa, Campher made a good case for himself at Southampton, scoring an unbeaten 34 and taking 2-29 with his right-arm medium-pace. Despite having just four professional caps to date, the 20-year-old all-rounder looks a destructive white-ball player that could cash in against an England seam attack lacking experience.