Ireland will be touring Zimbabwe to play a bilateral series for the second time in 2023 as Zimbabwe cricket confirmed the itinerary for the white-ball series in December.
The two teams will first square off in a three-match T20I series, starting from December 7. Both teams will have new full-time captains leading their sides in the series in the form of Sikandar Raza and Paul Stirling. While Raza will be leading only in the T20Is, Stirling was recently named captain in both limited-overs formats.
The T20I series will then be followed by three ODIs, scheduled to be played on December 13, 15 and 17. All six games will be played at the Harare Sports Club. Earlier this year, Zimbabwe won the T20I series 2-1 whereas the ODI series was drawn 1-1 after the final ODI got washed out.
Ireland will be spending five days at a training camp in Spain from November 19-23 before heading to Zimbabwe for the series. Both the white-ball squads were announced by Cricket Ireland on Wednesday (November 8).
“This tour marks the start of a new cycle under a new leadership set-up, and we’re looking forward to seeing how this playing group evolves as it builds towards the next 50-over World Cup,” Andrew White, Ireland Men’s national selector, said. “However, before we get to that stage there will be two T20 World Cups to plan and prepare for, and this tour is core to our preparations for the T20 World Cup next June.
“We showed the world what we were capable of at the last T20 World Cup, but with the talent and potential within this playing group, there is a belief we can push on and achieve even more.” – Cricbuzz
