ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers 2023: IRE vs SCO Match 7 Pitch Report, Probable Playing XI, Match Preview and Fantasy Predictions
Match Details
ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers are underway and on Wednesday, June 21st, 2023, Ireland vs Scotland in Match 7 of the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. Ireland suffered a disappointing loss to Oman in their previous match, losing by five wickets. This was the first upset of the tournament, and Ireland is hoping to come back stronger.
Meanwhile, Scotland is competing in their first game of the event and is eagerly anticipating a successful start to their campaign.
Ireland would look to come back strongly in this match and this could be another exciting match that we have in our hands.
Pitch Report
The pitch conditions at this location are favorable for batsmen, and Wednesday’s match is likely to see high scores. The team that wins the toss should opt to field first. It would be a formidable target if the total score reaches about 280-300 runs. The spinners might come into play in the later stages of the game. The chasing team might get a better pitch to play on.
Teams Analysis
Ireland
They started their campaign with an unexpected defeat against Oman. Andrew Balbirnie is leading the team and he would be gutted by their performance in the first match. A loss from here may dent their hopes of qualifying for the World Cup 2023. They have the likes of vital members of the Irish squad consisting of Andy McBrine, Paul Stirling, and Harry Tector. Furthermore, Mark Adair and Joshua Little hold significant importance in both the bowling and batting aspects of the game. Tector and Dockrell were the top performers in the previous game hitting half-centuries while Josh Little and Mark Adair picked up 2 wickets each in the bowling.
In the recently concluded ICC CWC Qualifiers warm-up matches, they lost against the Netherlands and won against the USA. Still, they are finding the rhythm to be back on the winning ways. They couldn’t win a single international game in their last 5 matches. Except for this USA win, they were defeated at the hands of Bangladesh in a three-match ODI series by 2-0. Overall, they have the ability in their team but some consistency is lacking in the form.
Scotland
The Scottish side will be playing their first game. With Richie Berrington at the helm, the Scottish team is eager to start their campaign on a strong note by putting up a solid performance against Ireland. Their team comprises skilled players like Matthew Cross, Chris Greaves, Brandon McMullen and Hamza Tahir, who are expected to make a noteworthy contribution during the game.
In the ICC CWC Qualifier warm-up, Scotland lost both matches, one against the Windies and the other against the host Zimbabwe. Their batting unit let them down once again. In 2023, they emerged victorious against Namibia on both occasions but contrary to this, they were beaten by Nepal on both occasions. Therefore, they are an inconsistent side and they have to improve their batting in this match.
Head-to-Head Records
These teams have faced each other in 20 matches and Ireland vs Scotland has been dominated the match proceedings.
| Matches Played | IRE won | SCO won | Tie | No Result (NR) |
| 20 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
Key Players To Watch
We are taking stats of the ICC CWC Qualifiers warm-up matches stats to get an idea of the players’ form.
Ireland
| Player | Matches | Runs | Bat. Avg | Bat. Strike Rate | Wickets | Bowl. Avg. |
| H Tector | 2 | 153 | 153 | 114.1 | ||
| L Tucker | 2 | 142 | 71 | 95.3 | ||
| B White | 2 | 7 | 16.8 |
Scotland
| Player | Matches | Runs | Bat. Avg | Bat. Strike Rate | Wickets | Bowl. Avg. |
| M Cross | 2 | 67 | 33.5 | 90.5 | ||
| B McMullen | 2 | 87 | 43.5 | 79 | ||
| C Sole | 2 | 4 | 12.5 | |||
| C Greaves | 2 | 4 | 18.2 |
Squads
Ireland
Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie (c), Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker(wk), George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Andy McBrine, Mark Adair, Graham Hume, Joshua Little, Benjamin White, Curtis Campher, Peter Moor, Craig Young, Barry McCarthy
Scotland
Matthew Cross(wk), Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Richie Berrington(c), Michael Leask, Chris Greaves, Tomas Mackintosh, Jack Jarvis, Christopher McBride, Alasdair Evans, Mark Watt, Hamza Tahir, Adrian Neill, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole
Ireland vs Scotland Match 7 Fantasy Predictions
Ireland
Scotland
Predicted Playing XI
Ireland
Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie(c), Harry Tector, Andy McBrine, Lorcan Tucker(wk), Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Joshua Little, Benjamin White
Scotland
Matthew Cross(wk), Christopher McBride, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Richie Berrington(c), Tomas Mackintosh, Michael Leask, Chris Greaves, Mark Watt, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole
Fantasy Team
Based on the stats above, this could be the fantasy team.
Conclusion
Ireland would need to come back strongly in this match. They are a dominant side against Scotland and they would want to extend the lead. On the other hand, Scotland is playing their first game and they need to work on their batting as they got bundled out in the warm-up matches on around 200 runs. Can they start off the campaign on a winning note or will Ireland get their first victory? This is going to be an enthralling cricket match and only time will tell us about the result.
