Ireland include fresh faces for Hong Kong T20Is

Ireland have named Joshua Little, the 16-year-old left-arm pacer, and batsman Lorcan Tucker in their 13-man squad for the upcoming two-match Twenty20 International series against Hong Kong, beginning September 5.


The duo was picked after impressing in the ICC Under-19 World Cup, 2016, where Tucker scored 222 runs, while Little bagged five wickets.
 
The selectors have made a series of changes to the squad, with the likes of Niall O'Brien, Boyd Rankin, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Andrew Poynter, Stuart Poynter, Gary Wilson making way for Peter Chase, Joshua Little, Barry McCarthy, David Rankin, James Shannon, Sean Terry, Greg Thompson, Lorcan Tucker.
 
"We wanted to bring some freshness to the squad. Left-arm quicks have been hugely successful in T20s and Josh's introduction will drive his career forward, we hope. He bowls with pace and is an excellent athlete," Alan Lewis, the chairman of selectors, said on Tuesday (August 23).
 
"Lorcan's ability to score all around the ground with his 360-degree game - as witnessed at the U19 World Cup - coupled with his wicketkeeping gives us excellent balance," he added.
 
Squad: William Porterfield (capt), Peter Chase, George Dockrell, Joshua Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Kevin O'Brien, David Rankin, James Shannon, Sean Terry, Greg Thompson, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Craig Young