Cricket Ireland has today confirmed the approval of best v best 50-over white ball matches in September and a new preparation camp ahead of Ireland Men’s tour to Bangladesh in October.
Following the news of the postponement of the European T20 Premier League to 2026, Cricket Ireland has been reshaping its budget to identify funds that could be invested into cricket activity for the senior men’s squad.
A targeted programme of activity has subsequently been developed for later in 2025.
Graeme West, Director of High Performance at Cricket Ireland, explains:
“We have been exploring a number of options to increase cricket content for the senior men’s squad following the postponement of the ETPL. After consulting with coaching staff, we determined that a block of 50-over matches that saw the best Irish cricketers in this format battling it out – similar in nature to last year’s Emerald Challenge – would be the preferred option. The three matches will be played at Stormont and any local fans who want to see the best Irish players on display are welcome to attend.
“In addition, we have also been working on plans for a preparation camp in Dubai for the squad that will be heading to Bangladesh in October. This will look to replicate the successful preparations we put in place earlier this year on the way to Zimbabwe.
“Given the Bangladesh tour will feature back-to-back Test matches – a scenario that we have only faced once before – this prep camp has been designed to ensure the readiness of our red-ball squad in a challenging two-Test scenario in unfamiliar conditions.
“This camp in Dubai will enable players to more quickly acclimatise to pitches and conditions more akin to the south-east Asian conditions ahead of the multi-format tour.”
Further details about the Bangladesh tour will be made available in due course.