Pakistan Tour of Ireland (2 ODIs)

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Pakistan will play two One Day International Matches with Ireland later this month. The matches are schedules for 28th and 30th May 2011, right after Pakistan leaves the Caribbean.

1st ODI: Ireland v Pakistan at Belfast
May 28, 2011 (10:45 local | 09:45 GMT | 14:45 PKT

2nd ODI: Ireland v Pakistan at Belfast
May 30, 2011 (10:45 local | 09:45 GMT | 14:45 PKT


It will be bonus mini series for the Pakistan Cricket Team that is suffering from a lack of international Cricket exposure.

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Niall McDonnell included for Pakistan ODIs

Uncapped opening batsman Niall McDonnell has been included in Ireland's 14-man squad for the upcoming two-match ODI series against Pakistan.

The squad includes 13 of the 15 players who were part of Ireland's World Cup campaign. The two players to miss out are left-arm spinner George Dockrell, who dislocated his shoulder during the World Cup match against Netherlands on March 18, and still hasn't recovered from the injury, and allrounder Andre Botha, who announced his retirement from internationals earlier this month.

Former New Zealand batsman Hamish Marshall, who became eligible to play for Ireland in April, was not considered because of a fractured right thumb sustained while playing for Gloucestershire against Middle+++ earlier this month.

McDonnell, 31, scored a century for Ireland A against MCC in August last year and reacted with delight to his call-up. "I can honestly say that I can't find a word to describe how I felt when Peter Gillespie rang me," McDonnell said.

"I suppose it was a mixture of excitement, raw nerves and a little trepidation at being involved at this level. It's a dream come true in many ways and the prospect of batting with the likes of Paul Stirling, William Porterfield or Ed Joyce is some motivation."

Coach Phil Simmons said a strong performance against Pakistan would boost Ireland's chances for the 2015 World Cup with a decision still pending on a qualification tournament for the tournament.

"Everyone is aware of the importance of these games, not just in terms of ranking points but also in the bigger scheme of things with a decision pending on a qualification tournament for the 2015 World Cup. Two more strong performances against Pakistan will help in that regard.

"The 2007 World Cup win against Pakistan was the catalyst for the exponential growth for Irish cricket. I can see no reason why we can't repeat that success on home soil given the talent we now possess in our ranks.

"There aren't a lot of surprises [in the squad] as we haven't had any cricket since the World Cup finished. We'll train hard in the build-up to the game, and hopefully the conditions at Stormont will suit us. The county players have been playing some excellent cricket, and most of them seem to be in really good form which is encouraging for Irish cricket."

The two ODIs will be played on May 28 and 30 in Stormont.

Squad:
William Porterfield, Alex Cusack, Trent Johnston, Nigel Jones, Ed Joyce, Niall McDonnell, John Mooney, Kevin O`Brien, Niall O`Brien (wk), Boyd Rankin, Paul Stirling, Albert Van der Merwe, Andrew White, Gary Wilson.

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Poynter replaces injured Niall O'Brien

Wicketkeeper Andrew Poynter will replace the injured Niall O'Brien in the Ireland squad for the two-ODI series against Pakistan in Stormont on May 28 and 30.

O'Brien fractured the fourth finger of his left hand after being struck by Simon Jones during his innings of 121 for Northamptonshire against Hampshire. As one of Ireland's most senior players, O'Brien is a significant loss for the team. Poynter last played in September 2010 against Canada and is likely to be a back-up for Surrey batsman Gary Wilson, who is first choice to take up the wicketkeeping role.

"It's obviously a big blow to lose Niall as he has been in such excellent touch this season," Ireland coach Phil Simmons said. "We're lucky in that we have Gary Wilson as a back-up keeper, and Andrew Poynter has never let us down any time he's been called upon."

O'Brien was frustrated to miss out but hoped to return to action soon. "It's so disappointing to miss these games, as I've obviously good memories of playing Pakistan after winning the Man-of-the-Match award when we beat them in the 2007 World Cup," he said. "I'll have another x-ray in ten days and would hope to be back playing in about three weeks."

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Pakistan Squad for Ireland ODI's

Squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Younis Khan, Taufeeq Umar, Mohammad Hafeez, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Salman (wk), Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Umar Akmal, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Tanvir Ahmed, Junaid Khan, Hammad Azam

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boringgggggggggggggge

[Sadaf Gondal]

un ke country mein hai..shahyed mazay ka ho

[LoViNg IrFaN]

boring nhi hai Ireland ek achi team bn gyi aur un ki suitable conditions main acha perform karegi

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borrrrrrrrringgggggggggg

[Nida_Ali_Nido]

haar gye to ijat bi jay gi

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Afridi pulls out of Ireland ODIs

Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, has withdrawn from the squad for the two one-day internationals against Ireland later this month for personal reasons, according to a PCB official.

"Afridi has informed PCB that due to the illness of his father he had to stay longer in USA, so he would be unable to join the squad for Ireland." PCB spokesman Nadeem Sarwar told ESPNcricinfo.

The pull-out comes after days of speculation about Afridi's unhappiness at the decision to remove him as captain, with some local reports even suggesting he would retire from the game altogether, though there is no indication yet that this is the case. Last week the board chose to replace Afridi as ODI captain with Misbah-ul-Haq, despite the former having led Pakistan to the semi-final of the World Cup.

Pakistan are expected to arrive in Ireland on Wednesday, with the two games scheduled for May 28 and 30. The board will not be sending a replacement for Afridi.

Afridi took over as ODI captain properly in June last year, before the Asia Cup, having been appointed the Twenty20 captain the previous year. He was never given the leadership on a full-time basis, but first irked the board by walking away from the Test captaincy on the tour to England, one Test after being appointed. Misbah, currently the Test captain, now becomes the fifth ODI captain under the near three-year tenure of Butt; there have also been six Test captains in that time.