Zimbabwe vs Ireland, ICCWCT20 2022, Today Match Prediction 17 October 2022

zim vs ire Match Prediction & Analysis

Zimbabwe will square off against Ireland in an all-important Group B clash of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022. Both teams will be vying for a coveted Super 12 spot, and winning this match will make their road a little easier. Ireland have played plenty of T20s this year and have hence had a lot of practice. The Bellerive Oval in Hobart will play host for all the six First Round fixtures.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Zimbabwe Preview

Zimbabwe’s recent white-ball performances have been really good. They are coming off a T20I and ODI series win against Bangladesh at home and will be confident of their chances.

Zimbabwe lost their first warm-up game against Sri Lanka and their next match against Namibia was washed out. Star all-rounder Sikandar Raza will be their most important player and the team’s hopes of making it to the next stage largely rest on him. Raza has been in sensational white-ball form this year and smashed three ODI centuries during the month of August alone, which earned him the ICC's coveted Player of the Month award. He was also named Player of the Tournament during Zimbabwe's unbeaten run in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Global Qualifier B campaign. Raza also bowls some handy off-spin and will be crucial during the middle overs.

Skipper Craig Ervine will also be relied upon to score some runs at the top of the order along with Wessly Madhevere. Pacer Brad Evans and spinning all-rounder Ryan Burl are Zimbabwe’s bets options with the ball.

Zimbabwe Predicted Playing XI:

Regis Chakabva (wk), Craig Ervine (c), Wesley Madhevere, Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Ryan Burl, Wellington Masakadza, Tendai Chatara, Blessing Muzarabani, Clive Madande, Brad Evans

Zimbabwe Actual Playing XI:

Richard Ngarava, Ryan Burl, Sikandar Raza, Milton Shumba, Regis Chakabva, Craig Ervine, Wesley Madhevere, Tendai Chatara, Blessing Muzarabani, Sean Williams, Luke Jongwe

Ireland Preview

Ireland haven’t reached the knockout stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup since 2009 and will be hoping this year sees a change in their fortunes. They have a tough ask on their hands because if they fail to beat Zimbabwe, they would need to beat both Scotland and the West Indies to keep their Super 12 hopes alive.

Ireland have played more than 20 T20Is this year and have hence got enough practice under their belt before the big tournament. While Ireland will miss the services of Kevin O’Brien who retired earlier this year, they still have plenty of depth in their ranks. The likes of Paul Stirling and Andrew Balbirnie offer them the much-needed experience with the bat and ball respectively. The batting department looks in good shape with Gareth Delany and Harry Tector sure to exploit the Powerplay overs. Wicket-keeper Lorcan Tucker is another one who can accelerate through the middle.

Their bowling side has been weakened by the loss of the injured Craig Young. The onus will now be on pacers Mark Adair and Joshua Little, alongside off-spinner Simi Singh.

Ireland Predicted Playing XI:

Stephen Doheny, Paul Stirling (c), Lorcan Tucker (wk), Harry Tector, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Simi Singh, Joshua Little, Andrew Balbirnie, Conor Olphert

Ireland Actual Playing XI:

Mark Adair, Simi Singh, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Joshua Little, Paul Stirling, Barry McCarthy, Lorcan Tucker, Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Andrew Balbirnie

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The pitch at the Bellerive Oval is pretty good for batting. The batters tend to find it easy to play their shots as the ball comes in nicely to the bat. Seamers will get some purchase during the initial overs, but after that, the pitch is likely to flatten out.

Occasional rain and drizzle are expected in Hobart on the day of the game and we may hence get a truncated match.

Venue Details

The average 1st innings score at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart is 182. The highest total recorded here is 213-4 by Australia. The team batting first in this game will look to post a total of around 180 runs,

Toss: To Bowl

Rain is predicted on the day of the match, so the team winning the toss is likely to bow second because DLS might come into play later in the innings.