Two players from the original squad will not be returning for the three-match one-day international series against Sri Lanka, since they suffered injuries during the Twenty20 International series. Nevertheless, Ireland Women have relocated to Belfast ahead of the series.
The fact that captain Laura Delany was injured meant that the home team would be without its long-time leader and most seasoned player for the crucial ICC Women’s Championship matches, which somewhat dampened the joy that Ireland Women felt after their historic first-ever victory over Sri Lanka on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, Laura Delany injured her ankle while rolling it in the field, perhaps resulting in ligament damage. She was ruled out of the three ODIs after undergoing scans today.
Jane Maguire will be a replacement for the injured Orla Prendergast, and Gaby Lewis will take over as captain and vice-captain. The second withdrawal confirms that Una Raymond-Hoey’s low-grade muscle tear sustained in Game 1 of the T20I series will also prevent her from playing in the ODI series. Sarah Forbes will be the team’s backup.
The loss of a team member due to injury is always devastating, but losing the captain, who is our most seasoned player, has forced us to reevaluate our strategy from the ground up. Ed Joyce is the head coach of Ireland Women. In Laura’s absence, Gaby has led previously. I have no problem with her taking over as leader for the ODI series since she is a very good one.
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Jane Maguire joins the ODI team after demonstrating strong ball-handling skills in the Twenty20 Internationals. Although she was unfortunate not to make the starting lineup, this might be a positive development for Ireland as it shows the calibre of talent we are producing here and how fierce competition is raising standards.
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