Ireland and Pakistan haven’t played a T20I against each other in a decade and a half, but in a sense, acclimatising to each other is no one’s priority. Ireland, despite being at home, haven’t played at Clontarf – the venue for the three T20Is over five days – for the best part of three years, so it’s not just Pakistan who descend on unfamiliar conditions.
Both sides have priorities further west in mind, because in about three weeks, they fly out to the US, where they kick off their T20 World Cup campaigns. They’re in the same group, too, and will face each other on June 16 in Lauderhill, Florida, where the conditions or climate are unlikely to replicate Dublin in any serious way.
This, instead, is about fine-tuning last-minute preparations, and making sure both sides head out to that tournament with momentum and form on their side. Pakistan have four further T20Is in England after this series, while Ireland play a tri-series in the Netherlands with Scotland also taking part before their World Cup opener against India in New York.
That series was something of a mixed bag, with a comprehensive victory in the first game followed by two defeats. The series’ most noteworthy moment didn’t come in that format at all, but in the solo Test in Abu Dhabi, where Ireland beat Afghanistan to register their first ever Test win.
Pakistan know all too well the complications that can emerge from contract negotiations; they went to last year’s ODI World Cup out of contract, involved in contentious negotiations with their board. At the moment, though, the bulk of their concerns have to do with sorting out their top order and a perceived frailty when setting targets. They play this series off the back of an unimpressive home series against an enfeebled New Zealand side Pakistan were arguably lucky to come away with a draw from, and Ireland may well be encouraged by some of Pakistan’s vulnerabilities that surfaced, should they have the means to exploit them.
Interim head coach Azhar Mahmood also talked up Pakistan’s attempts to rectify their scoring rate. “We know who our openers will be,” Mahmood said in what should be encouraging news for Ayub after he was also given Babar’s backing following the New Zealand series. “We understand that we need to play the powerplay well, and then continue to accelerate in the next four overs. We’ve practiced for the Powerplay and the middle overs, and now it’s time for everyone to do their jobs and execute.”
But Pakistan’s tendency to play up, or down to the level of their opponents has often meant it is difficult to glean any lessons from a particular series. In Ireland, with focus already shifting elsewhere, that is likely to be doubly true.