Adair, Terry called up to Ireland squad

The uncapped pair of Mark Adair, a right-arm seamer, and Sean Terry, the top-order batsman, have earned call-ups to the Ireland squad to face Afghanistan in a five-match ODI series next month.

George Dockrell and Max Sorensen have been dropped while Boyd Rankin has Warwickshire commitments. Peter Chase, the seamer with one ODI cap, and allrounder Tyrone Kane have earned recalls.

Adair, 20, has played only one first-class match in which he took a solitary wicket alongside four T20 games in which he has two wickets. Terry, the son of former England batsman Paul Terry, is relatively more experienced, with 11 first-class matches under his belt, in which he has scored 440 runs at 29.33 including five half-centuries. In eight List A games, Terry has 161 runs at 32.20.

"Mark Adair has impressed me with his skills in the limited opportunities I have seen him, and the series is ideal to get him involved with our international programme," John Bracewell, Ireland's head coach, said.

Bracewell added that Terry's recent unbeaten double century against Scotland A boded well for him. "Naming 14 players - as opposed to 13 for the Sri Lanka series - gives us an opportunity to bring in batting cover and we believe that Sean Terry covers all the positions required," he said. "He showed his qualities with his recent unbeaten 251 against Scotland A. Tyrone Kane gives us allrounder cover in the squad as we look to increase our depth in this area with the retirement of John Mooney."

Explaining the omission of Rankin, Bracewell said that it had been known that this series would potentially clash with his county duties and they had come to an agreement with Warwickshire.

"When we re-signed Boyd back into the Ireland squad at the end of last year, the Afghanistan series was possible but unconfirmed. The likely series dates fell at a crucial time for Warwickshire, so we agreed he would not be available for the series if it was confirmed, but would be for all other major commitments in one of our busiest-ever years.

"On balance, we felt a partially-available Boyd was better than not at all. He'll be 32 next week and there is a lot of cricket coming up between now and the end of the summer. Both parties will continue to carefully monitor and manage his workload in his best interests and longevity in the game. Of course, succession planning is vital, so it's an ideal opportunity for us to look at other options - Peter Chase is the logical replacement for Boyd and is currently bowling very well."

Regarding left-arm spinner Dockrell, who has played 52 ODIs but did not appear in the two matches against Sri Lanka, Bracewell said that Ireland's spin stocks were reasonably healthy. "With Andy McBrine bowling so well at present and Paul Stirling an experienced back-up, we feel in the early stages of the series, an extra spinner is a luxury we don't need. We will of course look at our spin options as the series progresses, and if necessary, strengthen that area."

Ireland will take on Afghanistan in the first ODI on July 10. All five matches are scheduled to take place at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast.