Ireland has handed a maiden call-up to spinner Gavin Hoey in the 14-member squad for their upcoming one-off Test match against Zimbabwe at Stormont in Belfast happening from July 25-29.
It will also be the first Test match ever played in Northern Ireland and only the second Test Match in Ireland – the inaugural match was against Pakistan in 2018, as the hosts seek to get their first-ever win in the longer format on home soil.
“Hoey is a talented leg spinner, and his ability to spin the ball both ways gives us a strong wicket-taking option. Again, he’s a player who’s been on the radar for a while and can play across all three formats. But this is an opportunity for him to come into the Test squad and get used to the environment,” said Ireland selector Andrew White.
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Spinner Matthew Humphreys returns to the Ireland squad after making his Test debut against Sri Lanka last year. “Humphreys made his Test debut in Sri Lanka and found the going difficult against good players of spin out in the subcontinent. He’d admit himself that he went through a period of a loss of form and maybe a loss of confidence, but he’s worked extremely hard to come back into the reckoning and his performances for Ireland Wolves have been exactly what we were looking for.”
“Obviously in the West Indies last year for Emerging Ireland, then in Nepal, and has now backed it up in the recent series for the Emerging Ireland side against West Indies Academy, where he took 10 wickets. But it’s the consistency he has shown over the last period which has been pleasing and he very much deserves his call-up,” added White.
Ireland beat Afghanistan by six wickets in March this year in the UAE to secure a first Test victory after making their debut in the format in 2018. “On the back of our first victory (against Afghanistan), we’re looking to back that up with another win. We’re not looking to just pick a squad that will compete, we’re looking at a squad that can win the Test match – by taking 20 wickets and scoring the runs that we need to score arguably in the first innings to set up the victory.”
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“Scott Irvine, our performance analyst, is one of the best in the business in terms of providing myself, the coaches and players with the crucial information that we need to make decisions. The information he has given us to select the squad puts us in an informed position, and will hopefully give us the best chance of winning,” stated White.
Ireland squad: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gavin Hoey, Graham Hume, Matthew Humphreys, Andy McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, PJ Moor, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young.
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