In the fourth match of the tournament, it is Zimbabwe crossing swords with Ireland at Bellerive Oval in Hobart. The match will commence at 1:30 PM IST on Monday.
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Despite making five World Cup appearances, Zimbabwe haven’t yet qualified for the next round after Group Stages.
Zimbabwe exited the group stages in 2007, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016, they withdrew from the tournament in 2009 and were suspended in 2021.
With the current form, both teams have an equal chance of winning this. With the players like Sikandar Raza and Paul Stirling involved, the match is expected to go down the wire
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The Irish side has well in ICC events. Apart from not qualifying for the inaugural edition, the team has made it to all other editions.
In 2009 they made it to the Super 8, which is their best-ever World Cup so far.
Later, Ireland have been exiting out from the Group Stages for the next five consecutive editions.
Ireland have had a great summer. Though they didn’t win against India, New Zealand, and South Africa in the T20I series, the Irish team won the hearts by playing well.
They took the game deep and gave the visiting teams a run for their money.  After all these series, they managed to beat Afghanistan in a 5-match T20I series to end the summer on a high.
Players like Harry Tector, Joshua Little, Lorcan Tucker, Gareth Delany and George Dockrell stepped up in the team’s success.
The plus point about the Irish camp is that they did well when their top players like Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie, Mark Adair, and Curtis Campher were out of form. If they play as a unit, they will be a formidable team in the tournament.
Since, West Indies is expected to be the group winners, a win here is a crucial thing for both teams. The winning team will have an advantage as they fight for the second spot, which is enough to go for the second round.
Squads
Zimbabwe: Craig Ervine (c), Ryan Burl, Regis Chakabva (wk), Milton Shumba, Sean Williams, Tendai Chatara, Bradley Evans, Luke Jongwe, Clive Madande, Wesley Madhevere, Wellington Masakadza, Tony Munyonga, Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Sikandar Raza.
Ireland: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Graham Hume, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Fionn Hand, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Conor Olphert, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling.
