Stirling picked, Little rested for Lord's Test against England
Cricket
Craig Young and Conor Olphert have been added to the Ireland squad that toured Sri Lanka last month.
DUBLIN (Web Desk) - Paul Stirling has been included in Ireland's 15-man squad for their one-off Test against England at Lord's next month, completing a U-turn on his decision to skip Ireland's red-ball commitments this year.
Stirling held discussions with Cricket Ireland at the end of last year in which it was agreed that he would sit out of their Test fixtures in 2023 in a bid to manage his workload.
"My opinion was I was reluctant to pick and choose matches in each format," he told the Belfast Telegraph last month. "I said, 'is there a format entirely that we might rest up on and take breaks on?' and I thought that was the best way to go."
But after Ireland's two scheduled ODIs in Sri Lanka last month were converted into a second Test, Stirling returned to red-ball cricket and made his maiden Test hundred in Galle.
He has now been included in their squad for the Lord's Test, which starts on June 1. Stirling spent a decade calling Lord's home when he was a Middlesex player, and featured in Ireland's defeat there in 2019.
Ireland will play a first-class, three-day warm-up match against Essex from May 26-28, and Stirling's involvement in that will, bizarrely, depend on Royal Challengers Bangalore's progress in the IPL.
Stirling will act as cover for Glenn Maxwell as Warwickshire's second overseas player in the early stages of the T20 Blast, and the duration of his stint there will depend on whether RCB and Maxwell reach the IPL's play-offs.
Meanwhile, Ireland have not selected left-arm fast bowler Josh Little, who would have made his debut in the format if picked, for the England Test. Little has not played a first-class game since 2019, but is Ireland's most promising bowler across all formats.
Andrew White, Ireland's national selector, said: "Although the IPL will have finished, we are very conscious of the need for Josh to rest, recover and prepare for what will be a busy and important summer for us in white ball cricket."
Craig Young and Conor Olphert are both added to the squad that toured Sri Lanka, while opening batter Murray Commins and spinners Matthew Humphreys and Ben White drop out.
"There is a familiar shape to the squad but given the progress and performances in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka - particularly with the bat - the players acquitted themselves well and can take some level of confidence into Lord's," White added.
"It is great news that we can welcome the likes of Craig Young and Conor Olphert back into the set-up, and the next few weeks will be important for both these lads as they increase their workload ahead of this red-ball series.
"We have only gone with one frontline spinner, with conditions very different than where we have most recently toured, but Andy McBrine clearly demonstrated his all-round talent and also has the experience of playing at Lord's in 2019."
Squad: Andrew Balbirnie (captain), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Fionn Hand, Graham Hume, Tom Mayes, Andrew McBrine, James McCollum, PJ Moor, Conor Olphert, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Craig Young
Fixtures: May 26-28 - First-class warm-up vs Essex, Chelmsford; June 1-4 - Test vs England, Lord's.
