Ireland thrashed Namibia in the second qualifying final of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier UAE 2012, to book their place in the ICC World Twenty20, which is to be hosted in Sri Lanka.
Afghanistan, were the first team to qualify for the World Twenty20 after winning all eight of their qualifying matches, and will now face the Irish in a finals to determine which group they will be put into during the tournament.
The winner of the finals between Afghanistan and Ireland, will be part of Group B, which includes Australia and the West Indies, while the loser, complete Group A, which consists of defending champions England and India, who won the contest in 2007.
Ireland Captain, William Porterfield, was extremely pleased with the performance of his squad, and said: “We came here with a goal of winning this tournament. The qualification has been achieved. We have done it the hard way but it is yet another great day for Irish sport. We just want to keep it going.”
International Cricket Council (ICC) Chief Executive, Haroon Lorgat, also congratulated the team for their amazing victory. “Congratulations are in order and I know this means a lot to Cricket Ireland, the team and the nation for qualifying to play in the ICC World Twenty20 Sri Lanka 2012. This is worthy reward for the Irish team and also illustrates the continuing success of the Gatorade ICC High Performance Programme” he said.
With Ireland and Afghanistan set to play on the big stage, their fans will be hoping that their side can clear the group stages, while pulling off some major upsets in the process.