While it may have been to the benefit of neighbours across the water, it has been a hell of a year for Eoin Morgan. The Dublin native captained England to their to their first even ICC World Cup victory last week, etching himself into the history books in the process.
Morgan started his international career with his native country, before switching his allegiances to England in 2009. As Ireland were not a test nation at the time, and the player qualified via his English-born mother and the residency rule, the move was permitted by the ICC.
His achievement in captaining the world champions received a mixed reception in this country. Some hailed it as one of the greatest feats completed by an Irish sportsman, while other criticised him for turning his back on his home nation.
While he may no longer represent Ireland at international level, he will return to Dublin to play his cricket later this year.
The inaugural Euro T20 Slam will take place later this year, with sides from Ireland, Scotland, and The Netherlands making up the six team field. The tournament will be getting underway on August 30th, with 33 games taking place before its conclusion on September 22nd.
Breaking: @Eoin16 will represent the Dublin Chiefs!
Are you excited to see him a don a Green jersey again?
Watch the #ET20SDraft LIVE: https://t.co/yDNmewRMGu#EuroT20Slam pic.twitter.com/CYd8sLiaaM— Euro T20 Slam (@et20s) July 19, 2019
The teams involved are: Dublin Chiefs, Belfast Titans, Edinburgh Rocks, Glasgow Giants, Amsterdam Knights, and Rotterdam Rhinos.
The tournament, which is backed by a group of wealthy Indian investors, will feature a number of well-known players.
Each side will sport an 'icon player' and a 'marquee player', who will earn a salary of €120,000 and €100,000 respectively. Five international players and nine local players will make up the rest of the squad.
The draft took place earlier today, with Eoin Morgan being selected by the Dublin Chiefs as their icon player. The Chiefs also took the world's highest ranked batsman in the draft, Pakistan's Babar Azam.
The Dublin side, as well as the Belfast Titans, will play their home games at Malahide Cricket Club.
