The series is still locked at 0-0 after the opener was washed out without a ball bowled, so this effectively becomes the first real contest of Ireland’s five-match series against Afghanistan, at Bready Cricket Club on Friday, August 7, at 10:45 AM local (3:15 PM IST).
Both squads remain unchanged from the abandoned opener. Afghanistan arrive as firm favourites under new full-time captain Rahmat Shah, having won 2-0 the last time these sides met in the UAE, while Ireland’s new-look side under Paul Stirling gets a genuine first chance to make an impression.
IRE vs AFG Match Details
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | Ireland vs Afghanistan, 2nd ODI |
| Series | Afghanistan tour of Ireland 2026, five-match ODI series. Series locked at 0-0 after the 1st ODI at this same ground was abandoned due to rain without a toss taking place. |
| Date | Friday, 7 August 2026 |
| Time | 10:45 AM local / 3:15 PM IST |
| Venue | Bready Cricket Club, Bready, Northern Ireland |
| Format | One Day International, 50 overs per side |
| Captains | Paul Stirling (Ireland), Rahmat Shah (Afghanistan) |
| Form | IRE: No competitive action yet this series after the washout. Ranked 12th in the ICC Men’s ODI rankings, and missing six frontline seamers to injury, with debutants Jai Moondra, Ben Calitz and Byron McDonough still awaiting their first bowl. AFG: Also without a match yet this series, but arrive full of confidence, ranked 8th in the ICC rankings and having beaten Ireland 2-0 in their last ODI series meeting, in the UAE earlier this year. Rahmanullah Gurbaz continues in career-best touch after three centuries in recent domestic and franchise cricket. |
| H2H | Afghanistan have won the last six ODIs between these sides, and Ireland’s most recent win in the format dates back to May 2019. |
Dream11 Team For IRE vs AFG, 2nd ODI
Top Picks for IRE vs AFG, 2nd ODI
| Player | Team | Role | Key Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azmatullah Omarzai | AFG | Captain / AR | Captain pick. Genuine two-way threat in Afghanistan’s middle order. At 2x. |
| Rashid Khan | AFG | VC / Bowler | Vice-Captain pick. World-class leg-spin, Afghanistan’s most important bowling weapon. At 1.5x. |
| Ibrahim Zadran | AFG | Batter | Experienced top-order anchor for Afghanistan. |
| Paul Stirling | IRE | Captain / Batter | Ireland’s captain, back from injury and eager to make an impact after the washout. |
| George Dockrell | IRE | All-Rounder | Needs just 3 wickets to become Ireland’s all-time leading ODI wicket-taker. |
Pitch Report
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Venue | Bready Cricket Club, Bready, Northern Ireland. Has hosted just one men’s ODI before this series, back in 2019. |
| Pitch Type | The ground has generally offered a high-scoring surface when play has gone ahead, with recent women’s ODIs here producing totals in excess of 240 in successful chases, and Ireland chasing down 255 against Zimbabwe in the only previous men’s ODI played here. |
| Scoring | With no play possible in the opener, there is limited fresh data from this series, but historical trends point to a good batting surface once the new ball is seen off. |
| Pace vs Spin | New-ball seamers should find some early assistance in typically damp Irish conditions, with Afghanistan’s varied pace and spin options, including Fazalhaq Farooqi and Rashid Khan, likely to pose the biggest threat through the middle overs. |
| Toss Factor | Given the ground’s history of high-scoring chases when conditions allow, expect the toss winner to consider bowling first, weather permitting. |
Weather Report
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Temperature | Cool for August, with a high of around 18°C (64°F). |
| Sky | Partly cloudy through the day. |
| Rain Chance | Moderate, around 20 percent, an improvement on the washout that hit the opener. |
| Humidity | Moderate, typical of a Northern Irish summer morning. |
| Overall | Better conditions than the abandoned opener, though still worth monitoring given how quickly the weather turned on Wednesday. |
IRE vs AFG Toss Prediction
With this ground historically rewarding successful chases and a much-improved forecast compared to the washed-out opener, expect the toss winner to lean toward bowling first.
**If Paul Stirling (Ireland) wins, **expect him to bowl first, trusting Ireland’s varied but inexperienced pace attack, including debutant Jai Moondra, to make early inroads before backing his own top order, including Andrew Balbirnie and Harry Tector, to chase down a target.
**If Rahmat Shah (Afghanistan) wins, **expect Afghanistan to also bowl first, using Fazalhaq Farooqi and the pace attack to apply early pressure before trusting Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran to chase down a target with the fluency Gurbaz has shown in recent weeks.
Injury and Team News
Ireland:
Ireland are still waiting for their first competitive action of the series after Wednesday’s washout, with captain Paul Stirling eager to get his first assignment back from injury underway. The squad remains significantly weakened by injuries to six frontline seamers, including Josh Little, Craig Young and Barry McCarthy, meaning debutants Jai Moondra, Ben Calitz and Byron McDonough are all still waiting for their first taste of ODI cricket. No further injury concerns have been reported for the squad ahead of this fixture.
**Key players: **Paul Stirling (c, captain, returning from injury), George Dockrell (closing in on Ireland’s all-time ODI wicket-taking record), Andrew Balbirnie (experienced top-order anchor), Harry Tector (classy middle-order batter), Lorcan Tucker (dependable wicketkeeper-batter), Jai Moondra (highly rated debutant seamer, still uncapped).
**Predicted Ireland XI: **Paul Stirling (c), Andrew Balbirnie, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Andrew McBrine, Mark Adair, Jai Moondra, Ben Calitz, Byron McDonough.
Afghanistan:
Afghanistan also await their first match of the tour under new full-time captain Rahmat Shah, who takes over from Hashmatullah Shahidi with Rahmanullah Gurbaz as his deputy. Gurbaz arrives in the form of his career, and the squad blends that firepower with the experience of Ibrahim Zadran and the bowling threat of Rashid Khan and Azmatullah Omarzai. No injury concerns have been reported for the squad ahead of this fixture.
**Key players: **Rahmat Shah (c, new full-time captain), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (vice-captain, career-best form), Ibrahim Zadran (experienced top-order batter), Rashid Khan (vice-captain pick, world-class leg-spin), Azmatullah Omarzai (captain pick, genuine all-round threat), Allah Ghazanfar (young off-spin option), Fazalhaq Farooqi (frontline new-ball bowler).
**Predicted Afghanistan XI: **Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah (c), Hashmatullah Shahidi, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Sediqullah Atal, Rashid Khan, Allah Ghazanfar, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Yamin Ahmadzai.
