Andrew Balbirnie has been named T20I captain, taking over from Gary Wilson, as he becomes Ireland’s all-format captain. Balbirnie was named the ODI and Test captain earlier this month as took the baton from William Porterfield.
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Wilson, who was named Ireland’s full-time T20I captain in June this year, first led the side in a T20I in 2016 against Papua New Guinea before taking the role full time in 2018. He led the side in 26 games where Ireland won 12 and lost 13. “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 contributor to the team’s exciting progress over the last 18 months and qualifying for the T20 World Cup,” head coach Graham Ford said. “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.”
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Ireland finished third in the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier and sealed their spot in the tournament next year in Australia. Wilson acknowledged he was pleased with his tenure. “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,” he said.
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“I’m very much looking forward to continuing as a player and working with Balbo in the future. 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.”
