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Ireland, Afghanistan tweak series dates due to early Indian Premier League start
The one-off Test fixture will be Ireland’s first overseas Test assignment.
Published: Jan 14, 2019, 05:16 PM (IST)
Edited: Jan 14, 2019, 05:16 PM (IST)
Ireland and Afghanistan have agreed to tweak the dates of their series due to the early start of the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year. Both nations will be engaged in three Twenty20 Internationals, five ODIs and a one-off Test at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun which begins with the first T20I on February 21.
The IPL this year will begin on March 23 and with three Afghanistan players involved, the ODI series will now begin on February 28 with the one-off Test match from March 15. (ALSO READ: IPL 2019 to be held in India, will begin on March 23: BCCI)
“Initially, we planned to conclude the series on March 23 but keeping in mind the dates of the Indian Premier League in which three of Afghanistan’s main players will be participating, the dates were slightly adjusted and I would like to thank Cricket Ireland for honouring our request,” ACB CEO Shafiqullah Stanikzai was quoted as saying in Cricbuzz on Monday. (ALSO READ: IPL Auction 2019 Players List: Complete list of players sold and unsold)
According to Stanikzai, the five-match series will be helpful in Afghanistan’s preparations for the ICC World Cup 2019. “The series will be important for Afghanistan as we are in the preparation stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 and we are certain that both sides will play competitive cricket,” he said. (ALSO READ: This IPL I will be monitoring the players, keeping the World Cup in mind: Ravi Shastri)
Meanwhile, the one-off Test fixture be Ireland’s first overseas Test assignment.
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“The importance of this series to both nations cannot be understated, so it was important that we could ensure the fans did not miss out on a clash that will see best v best in terms of players available. We hope this slight amendment to playing days does not impact too much on the travel bookings of any fans attending the series. We look forward to a great series – which will include Ireland’s first overseas Test match,” CEO of Cricket Ireland Warren Deutrom said.