EIMEAR RICHARDSON showed her experience in Abu Dhabi yesterday as Ireland began their T20 World Cup qualifying campaign with an ultimately comfortable six-wicket victory over the United Arab Emirates.

CIARA METCALFE was born too early. If the 45-year-old was in her prime and available to partner fellow leg-spinner Cara Murray, then Ireland would be a shoo-in not only to reach the T20 World Cup finals but to win this month’s qualifying tournament in Abu Dhabi.

T20 World Cups have never been happy hunting grounds for Ireland’s women cricketers. In four previous tournaments they have lost all 17 of their games but there are great hopes for this year’s tournament, to be staged in Bangladesh in September.

Ireland Women bounced back from their loss to Scotland with a morale boosting four-wicket victory over the USA in their second and final warm-up game of the T20 World Cup qualifiers.

To play once for your country is an incredible honour for any sportswoman or sportsman. Lynne Cantwell won the most rugby caps for Ireland, 78, while Emma Byrne (134) tops the list in football.

Laura Delany celebrated her 200th cap for Ireland by hitting the winning runs in an eight-wicket win over Thailand in Dubai on Thursday night.

Ireland Women's T20I clash with Thailand has been abandoned without a ball bowled, but they did manage to beat the UAE in a capped game on Sunday evening.

EIMEAR RICHARDSON returns to a 15-strong Ireland squad for next month’s T20 World Cup qualifiers in Dubai where the Girls in Green will look to book their passage to the finals in Bangladesh in the autumn.

Eimear Richardson has been named in Ireland's squad for the T20 World Cup Qualifiers next month which is being held in the UAE.

Amy Hunter has been named the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for January, coming top of a worldwide poll ahead of Australian greats Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney.

Amy Hunter has been further rewarded for her record-breaking exploits in Zimbabwe by being voted International Women’s Player of the Month for January, the second time an Ireland player has won the title in six months.

Amy Hunter is named the ICC Women’s Player of the Month thanks to her rapid run-scoring feats in Ireland’s T20I series victory over Zimbabwe last month.

The records keep tumbling for Amy Hunter, still less than four months after her 18th birthday, but the Belfast schoolgirl is taking it all in her stride and a whole cricket career ahead of her.

Amy Hunter and Cara Murray were the stand out performers for Ireland Women on their recently concluded tour where they won seven and tied one of their eight matches.

LAURA DELANY produced a superb spell of 3-17 to lead Ireland to a 5-0 clean sweep of their T20 international series at the Harare Sports Club as Zimbabwe imploded spectacularly to lose by 14 runs.

Orla Prendergast cleared the ropes from the penultimate ball of the match to hand her side a nine-wicket win in a rain-curtailed eight-overs match in Harare.

Laura Delany marked her 100th T20 international appearance with an unbeaten half-century at the Harare Sports Club yesterday as her Ireland side beat Zimbabwe by 60 runs

AMY HUNTER remained unbeaten for a second successive T20 international in Harare yesterday, adding 77 not out to her century on Friday as Ireland took a 2-0 lead over Zimbabwe in the five-match series.

Sophie MacMahon has been ruled out of the remainder of the T20I series against Zimbabwe after sustaining a knee injury during Friday's win in the first game.

AMY HUNTER scored a record-breaking unbeaten century at the Harare Sports Club yesterday to set Ireland on the way to a 57-run victory over Zimbabwe in the first of a five-match T20 international series.

Amy Hunter loves the Harare Sports Club. On the ground where she scored her first century for Ireland on her 16th birthday, she added a second on Friday (aged 18 and 107 days) as Ireland won the first T20 international against Zimbabwe by 57 runs.

LAURA DELANY will be looking to emulate Paul Stirling today by leading her Ireland side to double glory in Zimbabwe as their five-match T20 international series gets underway at the Harare Sports Club.

CARA MURRAY became the first Ireland woman to take six wickets in a one-day international as a magical spell of leg spin delivered a 81-run victory over Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club, and a 2-0 series win.

Jane Maguire took Ireland to within a run of victory and a series win over Zimbabwe in Harare but after seeing Ava Canning run out off the penultimate delivery of a thrilling chase she missed the final ball and the match was tied.

GABY LEWIS launched a boundary blitz at the Harare Sports Club to fire Ireland to a 10-wicket DLS victory over Zimbabwe and a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three one day international series.

Orla Prendergast struck an unbeaten half-century as Ireland warmed up for tomorrow’s first one-day international against Zimbabwe with a convincing 158-run DLS victory over their hosts’ A-team at the Harare Sports Club.

Amy Hunter is preparing to return to the scene of her record-breaking arrival on the world stage when Ireland leave for a three-week tour of Zimbabwe on Friday.

ED JOYCE can look back on 2023 with quiet satisfaction as a year of steady and measurable progress for his Ireland women’s team, but also as one of missed opportunities.