Abu Dhabi [UAE], April 23 : Ireland captain Laura Delany is hoping that her team will use the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier to boost the growth of cricket in her country.
Delany will lead Ireland's campaign in Abu Dhabi as her team will attempt to earn one of two available spots at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October this year.
Ireland have appeared in four editions of the Women's T20 World Cup however the team is yet to register a victory from 17 matches against the powerhouses of the game.
But led by Delany and boasting a mix of big names that includes star batter Gaby Lewis, young all-rounder Orla Prendergast and experienced pacer Arlene Kelly, Ireland are out to impress at the qualifier and earn yet another ticket to take on the best teams around the globe at the T20 World Cup.
"It would be massive for us as a group and for women's cricket at home," Delany said on Monday.
"Very few games at home are televised and to get into a (T20) World Cup would mean that those games would get shown on TV and hopefully that would help increase the audience for women's cricket. For us as a group to be playing against the best sides in the world is exactly where we want to be and that is why these tournaments are so important. They might be nerve-wracking at times, but this is exactly where you want to be as a team," she added.
The Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier will see 10 teams divided into two groups of five each. The top two sides from each group will then enter the semi-final stage. The semi-finals' winners will secure a place in the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024 in Bangladesh.
"We didn't get enough runs on the board (against Scotland). We didn't get above 100 (runs), which in this tournament we are going to have to do that if we want to beat sides. I thought we bowled and fielded well at times, we just didn't have enough to defend and didn't take enough early wickets and we were on the backfoot from early on in that second innings and we found it really tough to get into a winning position," Delany admitted.
"We have to take it one game at a time and we can't look too far ahead. That game against USA tomorrow will be a good game, we haven't played against them in the last few years and we are unsure what to expect. That is a good challenge for us to try and turn things around from yesterday," he added.