Ireland name 15-member squad for T20 World Cup 2026, Paul Stirling to lead

Cricket Ireland has named its 15-player squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, which will be played in India and Sri Lanka in February and March. Paul Stirling will lead the team a second time in succession, with Lorcan Tucker his deputy.

The squad wears a similar look from the 2024 T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies, with 12 of the 15 members being retained.

"To say we are very much looking forward to this T20 World Cup is an understatement. After a memorable 2022 tournament, we probably weren't at our best in 2024 - and have been waiting to rectify that ever since," Ireland's national men's team selector Andrew White said.

"The last 18 months have been used to test a number of different options in tactics, roles and combinations and we are happy with where the squad is at going into the tournament. That 12 of the 15 players from the 2024 campaign are in this squad also demonstrates that we have a fairly settled squad, however, we have also been able to begin to integrate some exciting new talent - such as Tim Tector, Ben Calitz and Matthew Humphreys - and they add a further dynamic nature to the playing group," he added.

Ireland, who are slotted in Group B with Australia, Sri Lanka, Oman, and Zimbabwe, will play their fixtures in Sri Lanka. Their campaign will start against co-hosts Sri Lanka on February 8 in Colombo.

Ireland Men have a busy start to the year, with five T20Is in January in Dubai on the way to the T20 World Cup, followed by an official warm-up match before the global event.

"We have played a fair bit in this part of the world in the last few years, so we will be in a good position to plan and prepare thoroughly, and be ready for the challenge when the time comes," White added.

The Irish squad will depart Dublin on January 15.

Ireland squad for T20 World Cup 2026

Paul Stirling (c), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Ben Calitz, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Matthew Humphreys, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Harry Tector, Tim Tector, Lorcan Tucker (vc), Ben White, Craig Young