Ireland will take on Afghanistan in the first ODI of the five-match series at Bready Cricket Club, Magheramason, on Wednesday, August 5.
Led by Paul Stirling, Ireland levelled the three-match ODI series 1-1 against the West Indies at home in May 2025. On the other hand, Afghanistan suffered a 0-3 ODI series defeat to India away from home in June 2026. They will have a new skipper in Rahmat Shah for this series.
IRE vs AFG, ODI Series 2026, Match 1, Match Details
Match: Ireland vs Afghanistan, ODI Series 2026, Match 1
Time & Date: 3:15 PM IST, Wednesday, August 5
Venue: Bready Cricket Club, Bready, Northern Ireland
IRE vs AFG, ODI Series 2026, Match 1 Pitch Report
Only one ODI was played at this venue, with the first-innings score being 254. The captain, who won the toss, would love to bowl first on this surface. Any score above 290 would be a tough ask for the chasing side.
IRE vs AFG, ODI Series 2026, Match 1 Probable XIs
Ireland
Andrew Balbirnie, Paul Stirling (c), Cade Carmichael, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), George Dockrell, Curtis Campher, Andy McBrine, Mark Adair, Liam McCarthy, Jai Moondra
Afghanistan
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah (c), Hashmatullah Shahidi, Darwish Rasooli, Nangeyalia Kharote, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Fazalhaq Farooqi
IRE vs AFG, ODI Series 2026, Match 1 Winner Prediction
Match Winner: Afghanistan
These two sides have played against each other in 32 instances, with Ireland winning 13, while Afghanistan secured 18 victories, with one contest ending in a no-result. That said, Afghanistan is expected to come out on top in this fixture, thanks to their balanced batting and bowling attacks.
