Ireland To Host Afghanistan In ODI Series

Afghanistan and Ireland will play a five-match One Day International (ODI) series between July 10 and 19 in Belfast, in Northern Ireland.
This will be the first time Afghanistan takes on Ireland in a five-match series.
Nasimullah Danish, chairman of Afghanistan's Cricket Board, said: "This will be an innovative, skill enhancement experience for our players; Ireland will be visiting Afghanistan's new home ground of international cricket (Greater Noida) in Delhi early next year, alongside ICC Intercontinental Cup match."
Cricket Ireland performance director Richard Holdsworth welcomed the decision and said a reciprocal series will take place in India early next year.
"We are really looking forward to hosting the Afghan team in what has become great contests between well-matched teams," said Holdsworth.
Meanwhile, Shafiqullah Stanikzai, the CEO of the Afghan Cricket Board, said: "I understand these series will be hard-hitting, however our team is fully prepared for this contest against Ireland. We won ODI and T20 series against Zimbabwe last year in Sharjah Cricket, UAE. We continued and showcased excellent skills against ICC World Twenty20, 2016 champions West Indies, which was an outstanding achievement for Afghanistan Cricket Team."