An official men’s tour to Pakistan in August and September of next year has been announced by Cricket Ireland. The three T20Is and three ODIs that Ireland and Pakistan will play in this series are a part of the Future Tours Programme (FTP), which is slated to begin in September 2025.
Dates, locations, and any other tour schedule details are not specifically included in the release. It comes after Ireland’s women’s tour of Pakistan in November 2022, during which they also played three Twenty20 Internationals and one One Test.
Following a meeting between Brain MacNeice, chair of Cricket Ireland, and PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, a decision was made. At first, the PCB released a statement that seemed to suggest Ireland would play a Test series in Pakistan outside from the FTP.
“Chairman Cricket Ireland said that the Irish team would visit Pakistan next year in August-September for a Test series and would also review the possibility of a women’s team tour to Pakistan soon,” the PCB statement said.
Despite the board’s own statement seemingly confirming it, the PCB denied that any such Test series had been officially under agreement when ESPNcricinfo approached them for more information. A representative for Cricket Ireland stated that the two boards would talk about the specifics of the tour’s schedule later.
Cricket Ireland released an official statement about Naqvi’s meeting with MacNeice on their website a few hours after the PCB release. The two boards “were able to agree a men’s tour next year – this will be yet another historic first, coming after the tour to Pakistan by our senior women in 2022,” it said, citing “wide ranging discussions.”
Currently playing in a three-match Twenty20 International series in Ireland is the men’s team from Pakistan. The series decider is scheduled for Tuesday after the teams split the previous two games 1-1.