T20 World Cup 2024: Canada vs Ireland Best Bets

Friday’s solitary T20 World Cup game will see Canada take on Ireland in East Meadow, New York. The teams are facing each other for only the fifth time with their last meeting coming in October 2019. Canada might have come out on top in the previous meeting, but they are on a five-game winless streak in the T20I games. Have a look at our preview and best bets for this game.

Venue: Nassau County International Cricket Stadium

Betting Preview

Dilon Heyliger was Canada’s standout bowler against the USA, delivering 1/19 in three overs, with Kaleem Sana also effective early on, taking 1/34 in his four overs. The rest of the attack, however, leaked runs heavily. Saad Bin Zafar’s two overs went for 20 runs, and Jeremy Gordon had a disastrous eleven-ball over, including two no-balls and three wides, totalling 33 runs. This might prompt Canada to consider bolstering their batting against a tougher opponent.

Ireland faced a tough opener against India on a tricky New York pitch. Batting first, they struggled against India’s pace attack, with most batters falling cheaply. Curtis Campher and Gareth Delany managed to scrape together some runs, leading to a total of just 96. Harry Tector particularly struggled, scoring 4 off 16 balls.

The Irish bowlers, dealing with variable bounce, bowled too full and were punished by the Indian batsmen. Josh Little, in particular, conceded 42 runs in his four overs. Although they managed to dismiss Virat Kohli early, catching Rohit Sharma at slip could have been game changing. Ireland’s qualification hopes rest on their upcoming games, with the match against Pakistan being crucial.

Now, in Dallas, Ireland starts their path to qualification, with hopes of turning things around before heading to Florida. Canada, more acclimated to the conditions with two games already played at this venue, will see this as a crucial opportunity for a win. This match is pivotal for both teams, with Canada needing a victory to stay in contention and Ireland aiming to keep their qualification hopes alive.

Considering Ireland’s seasoned squad, familiar with the pressures of major ICC tournaments, Paul Stirling’s team is well-positioned to rebound swiftly from Wednesday’s setback and secure a win over Canada. Their depth of experience should give them the upper hand.

Players to Watch: Paul Stirling hasn’t crossed 40 in any of his last 16 T20Is, which is a prolonged run of poor form for him. He appeared to find some form in last month’s tri-series against Scotland and Netherlands, hitting 32 (21) and 36 (27) in the last two games but had a low score vs India. Against friendlier opposition, he’ll hope to make it count and score some runs heading into the two Florida games.

Aaron Johnson has a reputation for big hitting in his international career, with a phenomenal record against fellow World Cup team Oman in particular. In 2024, he hit USA for 74 & 33 and looked to score some runs in the opener. Having fallen for 23 (16), he’ll be hoping to make it a bigger one this game. He has the potential to be a real difference-maker for the Canadian batting effort.

Prediction: Ireland to win at 1.25.

Key Stats

Ireland have a 2-2 record vs Canada in T20Is.

Canada beat Ireland by ten runs in the T20 World Cup qualifiers in Abu Dhabi in October 2019.

Navneet Dhaliwal scored 69 (51) in his only T20I against Ireland.

Harry Tector registered scores of 0, 3, 1, and 4 in his last four T20Is.

Josh Little in T20Is post-2022 T20WC: 16 wickets at an economy of 6.96 and an average of 23.93 from 14 matches.

Best Bets

Best Bet: Highest individual score to be under 62.5 at 1.86.

Value Bet: Josh Little is to be Ireland’s top bowler at 3.60.

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