Ireland have named an unchanged squad for their One-Day International against Pakistan in Dublin with the same players that beat United Arab Emirates in two ODIs in March entrusted to take on Misbah-ul-Haq’s side.
The squad is an experienced one, and coach Phil Simmons believes his side is capable of beating Pakistan – as they did during the 2007 World Cup.
Clontarf will host both matches on 23rd and 26th May.
“We’ve always got a chance in our conditions,” Simmons said. “We’ve turned in some strong performances in recent years especially against England and Australia and lost matches we should have won.
“We’re getting stronger all the time and we’ll be well prepared and try to put them under pressure from the start.
“There’s a great atmosphere at Clontarf with the Irish fans behind us, and with a full house expected for both games, I’m hoping they can get us over the line against Pakistan. It’s certain to be a great carnival of cricket over the two days.
“We know how important it is to keep the momentum going with Irish cricket and we’ll be looking for headline victories in our marquee games this year.”
John Mooney is named in the squad but will only be available for the second match on 26th May as he serves a suspension for comments he made on Twitter following the death of Margaret Thatcher.
Ireland ODI squad: William Porterfield (captain), Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Ed Joyce, John Mooney (second match only), Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, James Shannon, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Andrew White, Gary Wilson