Ireland to host New Zealand and Bangladesh in a tri-series in 2017

Playing top teams on a regular basis in between major International Cricket Council (ICC) tournaments has been one of Ireland's major concerns, but that will be put to rest henceforth, starting with a tri-series involving New Zealand and Bangladesh.
The six-match competition is scheduled during May 2017, which New Zealand and Bangladesh will use as an opportunity to prepare for the ICC Champions Trophy being held in England in June 2017. Ireland, ranked No. 11 in the ICC One-Day Internationals (ODIs) rankings, failed to qualify for the event.
"Gone are the days - we hope - of being starved of the matches we deserve," said Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland's chief executive on Wednesday (April 27).
"Rather than getting 9 or 10 ODIs in the four years between World Cups, we aim to play at least that number annually. For years now, we have been asking for more matches to test our players, to raise the profile of our sport, to bring in new fans, and to attract more investment - but we've always struggled.
"Now the ICC's new-look ODI table has changed that, and we have the chance to become the team that John Bracewell wishes to shape - one that stays together and tours, rather than prepares purely for one-off games or major events."
Bracewell, Ireland's head coach, who took over from Phil Simmons after the 2015 World Cup, will be looking forward to facing his fellow countrymen. The offspinner played over a decade for New Zealand and was also their coach from 2003 to 2008.
"It should be a fantastic series and one which both myself and the squad will look forward to", said Bracewell. "We are now getting the volume of cricket that the team needs to take their cricket to the next level. We're also getting series against the Full Members rather than one-off games which is great.
"We have ODI's scheduled against Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Australia, South Africa, Bangladesh and New Zealand over the next year at least. Those series will give us an excellent idea of where we at in terms of progression. With home advantage in at least 13 ODIs in that period we'll certainly have plenty of opportunities to test ourselves against quality opposition," he concluded.
Ireland have played only two ODIs against New Zealand, losing both of them. However, they have a slightly better record versus Bangladesh, winning two out of the seven matches