Dublin [Ireland], Nov 29 : Andy Balbirnie has replaced Gary Wilson as Ireland’s T20I captain on Friday.
The decision was taken after discussions between Gary Wilson and the national selectors with a view to the future. Balbirnie was recently announced as the new Test and ODI captain.
Wilson has played 78 T20I games and scored 1239 runs while Balbirnie amassed 790 runs in his 37 matches.
“It was an absolute honour to be asked to captain Ireland – it was something that I dreamt about as a child. When I took on the job 18 months ago it was always the remit to qualify for the world cup and re-assess from there. I’m very much looking forward to continuing as a player and working with Balbo in the future,” Wilson said in an official statement.
“I think it will prove to be a great appointment and believe that it is important that he, as a captain, has control of all three sides and gets to take it in a direction that he sees fit,” he added.
Graham Ford, Head Coach of Ireland Men’s cricket team, said: “Gary has been an exceptional leader of this young squad over the last 18 months, and it has been his experience, incredible passion for Irish cricket and clarity of thinking that has been the major contribution to the team’s exciting progress over the last 18 months and qualifying for the T20 World Cup.”
“It is a mark of Gary’s professionalism that he has understood the interests of the team, and wholeheartedly committed his full support to Andrew in his newly consolidated leadership role,” he added.
Balbirnie’s first international match as captain will be on January 7, 2020, when Ireland will take on West Indies in an ODI in Barbados.
Following a six-match series against West Indies, Ireland is scheduled for tours to Sri Lanka, India to play Afghanistan and Zimbabwe, before returning to Ireland for a busy home season.
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