Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie hopes that his countrymen will play in the IPL one day
Ireland skipper Andrew Balbirnie has recently expressed hope that cricketers from Ireland will also get an opportunity to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) one day. However, he also admitted that they will need to perform more consistently to be picked up by an IPL team.
The 13th edition of the IPL was staged in the UAE against all odds last year. The popularity of the tournament saw an exponential rise in 2020 and has culminated in the addition of 2 more teams in the competition.
Balbirnie is in the UAE for a 4-match ODI series against the hosts which will start on January 8th. Talking in a press conference before the first game, Balbirnie called the cosmopolitan tournament the best in the world.
"It will massive. IPL is the best T20 league in the world with the best players in the world... But to get that opportunity, we need to put in performances for Ireland like we did in England and get to the top of the table more often," Balbirnie said.
Ireland's last ODI was was a watershed moment in the nation's cricket history. In only the second such instance, Ireland defeated neighbors England in the final ODI of the 3-match series in August. The historical victory came on the backs of brilliant centuries from Paul Stirling (142) and Barlbirnie (113).
IPL gives massive exposure to the players: Andrew Balbirnie
Balbrine also referred to UAE captain Ahmed Raza, who took part in one of the Royal Challengers Bangalore's training camps last year.
"In IPL, you get to talk to the best players, the best coaches in the world. And the exposure a player gets is massive... I know Ahmed was part of Royal Challengers Bangalore and he could probably say how good the experience was," said Balbirnie.
Ireland will also play a 4-match ODI series against Afghanistan which will commence on January 18th.