Ireland’s T20 World Cup campaign has taken a significant hit with captain Paul Stirling ruled out of the remainder of the tournament due to knee ligament damage. The injury occurred during Ireland’s recent outing against Australia, forcing a leadership reshuffle ahead of their upcoming fixtures in Sri Lanka.
The injury occurred on February 11 while Stirling was in the field against Australia. He injured his knee after hitting the ground while completing a catch to dismiss Josh Inglis in the seventh over. Although he later attempted to open the batting in Ireland’s chase of 182 for 6, his stay at the crease lasted just one delivery before he was forced to limp off. Ireland eventually fell to a 67-run defeat. Ireland head coach Gary Wilson addressed the situation after the match.
"He went for a scan this evening, so we'll have to wait for confirmation. He thought he was okay when he went out there to bat. He wasn't going to go out if he didn't think he was right. He was trying to maximise the powerplay, basically. He was trying to take off for a single, but clearly the knee seized up even more,” Wilson had said at the time.
Wilson had earlier indicated concern about the severity of the issue, stating that Stirling's knee "doesn't look great".
Who is Sam Topping, player to replace Sirling
With their skipper sidelined, Ireland have drafted in 20-year-old Sam Topping as a replacement. Topping had initially been named as a replacement player once Stirling was ruled out, and he is now officially part of the squad for Ireland’s final two group-stage matches. The side next faces Oman in Colombo on Saturday, before meeting Zimbabwe in Pallekele on February 17.
Topping, a left-handed top-order batter, is yet to make his international debut. Across 12 career T20 appearances, he has compiled 374 runs, registering four half-centuries. He averages 34.00 in the format and operates at a strike rate of 134.05.
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