Big day for Ireland cricket as they host Pakistan for inaugural Test

It is a big day for Ireland cricket as they are set to play their inaugural Test match against Pakistan, starting today (Friday) in Dublin.Ireland, who famously knocked Pakistan out of the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean, will become the 11th men’s Test nation when the coin is tossed at the Malahide ground.

For William Porterfield, the captain of Ireland, and his 10 teammates it promises to be an especially memorable occasion, but he was quick to pay tribute on Thursday to all those who had helped make Ireland’s Test debut a reality.

Although both Ireland and Afghanistan were granted Test status by the International Cricket Council (ICC) last year, neither of the newcomers can expect to be involved in full-length Test series anytime soon. But one-off games, as was the case with Sri Lanka at the start of their introduction to Test cricket, could yet be the best way to ease them into the five-day format.

“It is going to be very hard to organise three or five-game series with the cost that is involved in organising them,” said Porterfield, who played English county cricket for both Glouces­tershire and Warwickshire.

“It would be great if we could play quite a few Tests a year, but it is not financially viable as it stands,” the 33-year-old added. “That is what it is.”

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Meanwhile, Imam-ul-Haq is set to make his Test debut after Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed told reporters on Thursday that the tourists would field the same side as played in their preceding nine-wicket win at Northamptonshire.

“We have already decided, we will play the same team that played against Northamptonshire,” said Sarfraz. “We played our first match against Kent and they [Imam and Sami] both played together so we saw who was playing well.

Pakistan are without the injured Yasir Shah for a tour where, after their match against Ireland, they will also play two Tests in England. But they appear to have an able replacement in fellow leg-spinner Shadab Khan, with the 19-year-old taking a first-class career-best 10 for 157 against Northamptonshire.

Pakistan’s drawn four-day tour opener against Kent in Canterbury saw two whole days washed out, but conditions in Northampton allowed them to complete a morale-boosting win.

Teams:

Ireland (probable): William Porterfield, Paul Stirling, Ed Joyce, Niall O’Brien, Andy Balbirnie, Gary Wilson, Kevin O’Brien, Stuart Thompson, Andy McBrine, Boyd Rankin, Tim Murtagh.

Pakistan: Azhar Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Haris Sohail, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Shadab Khan, Fahim Ashraf, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Abbas, Rahat Ali.