Cricket Ireland on Friday named a 21-man expanded squad that will travel to Southampton for a training camp ahead of the three-match ODI series against England starting later this month.
To comply with COVID-19 protocols and public health directives, the squad will depart Dublin on a special charter flight to Southampton, before being transported in bio-secure buses to a hotel within the grounds of the Ageas Bowl where they will stay until their departure on August 5.
Following the training sessions and two warm-up matches as part of the tour schedule, selectors will then name a final 14-man squad for the series.
The remaining seven players will stay on as cover, given the protocols around the bio-secure venue and playing conditions.
"The selectors were delighted to have been able to meet once more to select a squad for international action. We have lost so much cricket this year, so to have a series - let alone such a major series as this - to look forward to is a great relief for all," Andrew White, Chair of National Men's Selectors, said in a statement.
"This lack of on-field action since March - and the short lead-in programme to the ODI series - influenced our thinking on the broader squad, however, the unique circumstances of the situation has allowed us to involve more players than we would normally bring on such a tour," he added.
Squad: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Paul Stirling (vc), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Peter Chase, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Jonathan Garth, Tyrone Kane, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, Kevin O'Brien, William Porterfield, Boyd Rankin, Simi Singh, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Gary Wilson, Craig Young.
The first ODI of the three-match series will be played on July 30 followed by on August 1 and 3.
( With inputs from ANI )
