IRE-W vs ENG-W: Preview, Pitch Report, Probable XIs, and Prediction
Ireland Women's team in a team huddle. (Twitter)
Ireland Women will be squaring off against England Women in the sixth match of the ongoing ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 at Boland Park in Paarl on Monday, 13th February 2023. This will be Ireland women's first match in the tournament, on the other hand, England women have already played a game against West Indies women, which they won by 7 wickets.
Ireland Women may not have a great record against the top teams but their recent form has been pretty good. The Laura Delany-led Ireland Women's team stunned defending champions Australia in the warm-up fixture by 3 wickets. Amy Hunter, Orla Pendergast, Laura Delany, Louise Little, Mary Waldron, Adrene Kelly, and Leah Paul all played crucial roles in taking the team over the line.
With a win over tournament favourites Australia, Ireland Women have sent a strong signal to their opponents stating that they are not the ones to be taken lightly.
Ireland Women have won three of their last five games in the format and their most recent win will give them the confidence to upset England in Paarl.
Having already won their game tournament opener, England Women will be riding high on confidence. They outclassed the 2016 T20 champions to start the tournament in a convincing manner. Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn and Katherine Sciver-Brunt, Nat Sciver, Sophia Dunkley, and Heather Knight were the chief contributors of the thumping win.
This victory proves that England are one of the top contenders for the coveted trophy. England Women's team have won their last seven WT20Is, a run that stretches back to September 2022. Heading into this match, Heather Knight and Co will be confident to extend their winning streak.
Match Details
- Date & Time: February 12, 6:30 PM IST
- Venue: Boland Park, Paarl
- Live Telecast & Streaming: Star Sports Network and Disney+ Hotstar
Pitch Report: The pitch is expected to be on the slower side. The spinners and slow bowlers will get good purchase off the wicket and the batters will have to assess the conditions well before playing their shots. The average first innings score in WT20s at the venue is 139.
Predicted Playing XI
Ireland: Amy Hunter, Gaby Lewis, Orla Prendergast, Eimear Richardson, Shauna Kavanagh, Laura Delany (c), Mary Waldron (wk), Louise Little, Arlene Kelly, Cara Murray, Jane Maguire
England: Sophia Dunkley, Danni Wyatt, Alice Capsey, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Heather Knight (c), Amy Jones (wk), Katherine Sciver-Brunt, Sophie Ecclestone, Charlie Dean, Sarah Glenn, Lauren Bell
Prediction
The England Women’s team has a pretty balanced squad and is quite capable of overcoming any challenge thrown at them. We back then to overcome the Irish challenge.
 "Vaibhav Tripathi")
