India opener key for Irish at World Cup - Stirling

Ireland skipper Paul Stirling says a bully show against number 1 broadside India successful their first men's T20 World Cup crippled would springiness them assurance for nan remainder of nan tournament.

It is nan toughest of openers for nan Irish arsenic they hole for nan Group A brushwood successful New York connected Wednesday (15:30 BST).

Ireland are making their seventh T20 World Cup quality and they besides play Pakistan, Canada and co-hosts USA, pinch nan apical 2 from Group A progressing to nan Super 8s stage.

Ireland ran India adjacent successful a T20 bid successful 2022 but lost retired 2-0 to nan visitors astatine Malahide, Dublin.

“India are a really difficult situation - they’ve sewage a number of top, apical bowlers, they’ve conscionable travel disconnected nan backmost of nan IPL and we cognize what they bring is nan highest value successful cricket standards," said 33-year-old opener Stirling.

“No matter what happens, if we put successful a beardown capacity we’ll spell successful pinch assurance into nan adjacent 3 games of nan group."

Stirling's squad look T20 World Cup debutants successful their pursuing 2 games - Canada connected 7 June successful New York earlier moving to Florida to return connected USA a week later.

"I surely ne'er thought I would play a cricket crippled successful New York successful my life - it’s thing I’m looking guardant to and I cognize nan remainder of nan squad are arsenic well," he added.

They decorativeness against Pakistan connected 16 June successful what is expected to beryllium a gathering betwixt nan sides battling for 2nd spot down India.

Pakistan beat nan Irish 2-1 in a caller T20 bid successful Clontarf and are 4 places higher successful nan rankings.

Canada and USA whitethorn beryllium outsiders but nan Americans boast location advantage and defeated Bangladesh 2-1 past period to gain a first bid triumph complete a Test-playing nation.

They followed that up by beating nan Canadians by 7 wickets in nan tourney opener connected Sunday.

Stirling said: “We cognize really daunting a task it will beryllium against 4 beardown teams, not conscionable 2 - nan India crippled is astir apt nan trickiest of nan 4 first up truthful we purpose to put successful a really bully performance, past we’ve sewage 2 immense games coming up aft that against nan USA and Canada.

“If we get to nan shape wherever we’re facing Pakistan successful a ‘winner-takes-all’ we’d astir apt beryllium happy but if we look excessively acold up and look astatine that script we’ll autumn short.

"The USA beating Bangladesh conscionable cements nan thought that we person to beryllium astatine our champion to hit them."

Pacemen Josh Little and Mark Adair will spearhead nan Irish onslaught while Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie, Harry Tector and Lorcan Tucker supply a beardown apical order.

Ireland warmed up for nan World Cup pinch wins complete Scotland and nan Netherlands earlier a 41-run defeat by Sri Lanka successful Florida connected Friday.

They progressed from nan first information astatine nan 2022 T20 World Cup earlier stunning England successful nan Super 12s.

A top-two decorativeness successful nan group is nan target and Stirling is upbeat connected Ireland's chances of doing conscionable that.

“We really want to get into that Pakistan crippled pinch a chance of getting done from nan group.

"I deliberation nan bookies would person america successful nan mediate scope of nan rankings to decorativeness 3rd successful nan group truthful I suppose nan situation for america is to effort and amended that and decorativeness second.

“I deliberation we’re successful a really bully place. I deliberation if we play to our imaginable and play to nan champion of our expertise we tin decidedly get done nan group but if we look past that first crippled against India past we’ll beryllium successful a spot of trouble.”