Big news came out before IPL 2026, in which it was told that the veteran suddenly decided to step down from the captaincy. The cricket world was really surprised by this decision. So let us know which player suddenly decided to leave the captaincy of which team.

Actually, Ireland captain Paul Stirling suddenly decided to step down from the captaincy from T20 International. However, Sterling will continue to lead the team in ODIs. The Irish player resigned from the captaincy with immediate effect on Thursday (19 March). So let us know why he took this decision.

What did Paul Sterling say?

On leaving the T20 captaincy, Paul Stirling said, “After careful consideration, I have decided to resign as captain of the Ireland T20 team. It has been a huge honor for me to captain Ireland in this format and I am extremely proud of it. Captaining your country is a privilege that also comes with great responsibility and I am very grateful for the trust and support I have received along the way.”

Paul Stirling has stepped down as the Ireland Men’s T20I captain – however, he will remain a valued member of the T20I squad and will remain captain of the one-day international squad.

Read more: https://t.co/cHM0JDn37a#BackingGreen… pic.twitter.com/1ywsJR1TsM

— Cricket Ireland (@cricketireland) March 19, 2026

Captain will remain in ODI

Stirling further said, “While I am stepping down from the T20 captaincy, I remain fully committed to the Ireland team and will continue to fulfill my role as ODI captain. I still have a lot of ambition as a player and I feel this decision will allow me to focus fully on becoming the best version of myself and giving my best on the field.”

Paul Sterling’s international career

Talking about Paul Stirling’s international career, till now he has played 10 Tests, 170 ODIs and 163 T20 Internationals. Sterling scored 521 runs in the test. Apart from this, he has scored 6005 runs in 162 innings of ODI, which included 14 centuries and 32 half-centuries. In 160 innings of T20 International, Sterling has scored 3895 runs with the help of 1 century and 24 half-centuries.

Also read: Chennai Super Kings got 440 volt shock, dreaded player out of IPL 2026

Ireland cricket team has suffered a big setback in the T20 World Cup 2026. Team captain Paul Sterling is out of the entire tournament due to injury. Sterling was injured during the match against the Australian cricket team. Ireland’s next match is with Oman on Saturday.

Paul Stirling was injured while catching Josh Inglis. While taking the catch, his knee hit the ground hard. After that catch, Sterling walked out of the field. In his place, Lorcan Tucker took over the captaincy against Australia.

Paul Stirling came out to bat against Australia, but while trying to score runs, his knee got twisted and he had to leave the field after retiring hurt. Now Sterling is out of the entire tournament. Ireland’s high performance director Graeme West said that losing Sterling’s experience is a big blow to the team.

Paul Sterling’s replacement announced

As a replacement for Sterling, 20-year-old uncapped wicketkeeper-batsman Sam Topping has joined the Ireland team. The good thing is that Topping is currently in the training camp of CSK, due to which he will join the team soon. Graeme West said, “He has high expectations from Topping.”

West further said, “To replace Paul, we have called in Sam Topping, who can join the team soon. He has been with the Northern Knights training squad and has been playing and training in similar conditions to Sri Lanka.” West also praised his skill set.

Ireland cricket team lost to Sri Lanka in its first match of T20 World Cup 2026. Australia defeated Ireland in the second match. With the aim of getting the first win of the tournament, the team will play against Oman on Saturday. After this, their last match in the group stage will be with Zimbabwe on 17 February.

Ireland’s updated squad

Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Ben Calitz, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Matthew Humphreys, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Harry Tector, Tim Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Sam Topping, Ben White, Craig Young.

Ireland captain Paul Stirling has added a new chapter in cricket history. In the match played against UAE in Dubai, Sterling played his 160th T20 International match and became the first male cricketer in the world to play the most number of matches in this format. With this record, he left behind India’s legendary batsman Rohit Sharma, who has 159 T20 International matches to his name.

The backbone of the team continuously since 2009 till now

Paul Stirling made his T20 International debut against Pakistan in 2009. Since then, he has been counted among the most reliable batsmen of the Ireland T20 team. Sterling, who plays on the opening slot, is known for his aggressive batting. Scoring runs quickly in the powerplay overs has been his biggest strength, due to which he has given strong starts to Ireland many times.

Also included among the top players in terms of scoring runs

35 year old Sterling has joined the list of top 5 batsmen who have scored the most runs in T20 International cricket. He has scored 3,874 runs in this format. He has one century and 24 half-centuries in his name. Ahead of him in this list are veteran batsmen like Babar Azam, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

Babar Azam (Pakistan) – 137 matches, 4453 runs

Rohit Sharma (India) – 159 matches, 4231 runs

Virat Kohli (India) – 125 matches, 4188 runs

Paul Stirling (Ireland) – 160 matches, 3874 runs

Jos Buttler (England) – 144 matches, 3869 runs

Showed strength in franchise cricket also

Sterling’s power-hitting ability has taken him to T20 leagues around the world. He has played in leagues like Pakistan Super League, Bangladesh Premier League, ILT20, SA20 and The Hundred. Although he did not bowl much due to a back injury, his influence in batting is still clearly visible.

Ireland’s strong score against UAE

In the record match, Ireland, batting first, scored 178 runs for 6 wickets in 20 overs. The team faltered in the beginning, but the partnership of Lorcan Tucker and Curtis Campher handled the innings. In the end, George Dockrell and Benjamin Calitz added runs quickly to take the team to a respectable score.

Italy Defeating Ireland In T20Is: The last match of the 3-match T20 series between Italy and Ireland in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) took place on Tuesday, 26 January. This match was played at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai, in which Italy surprised the cricket world by defeating Ireland. By winning this match, Italy also created history in T20 International, because this was the first victory of the Italian cricket team against any full member nation. Italy won this match played in Dubai by 4 wickets. In this match, the Italian team turned the tables in the last 2 overs and won the match with 3 balls remaining.

Italy turned the tables in the last 2 overs

After losing the toss and batting first, the Irish team could not even play the full 20 overs and were all out after scoring 154 runs in 19.4 overs. Chasing Ireland’s target of 155 runs, the Italian team had to score 30 runs in the last 2 overs to win, which Italy chased with 3 balls left. Italy, ranked 28th, achieved a historic victory against the world’s 11th ranked Ireland team.

Italy created history thanks to Grant Stewart

Italy had to score a difficult 30 runs in the last 2 overs i.e. 12 balls. In such a situation, Grant Stewart, who came to bat at number 7 for Italy, was determined to help the team overcome this problem. The result was that Stewart’s intentions won and Italy surprised not only Ireland but the entire cricket world by registering a historic victory. Grant Stewart hit 3 consecutive sixes one after the other to give Italy victory, due to which Italy won the last match of the 3-match T20 series against Ireland in just 3 balls. Grant Stewart scored unbeaten 33 runs on 19 balls, which also included 4 sixes and 1 four.

Ireland captain equals Rohit’s world record

Ireland definitely lost against Italy, but during this match, Ireland captain Paul Stirling equaled the world record of former Indian captain Rohit Sharma in T20 International. Sterling has equaled this in terms of playing the maximum number of matches in T20 International. Rohit has played 159 T20 International matches in his career. The match in which we lost against Italy was also the 159th T20 International match of Ireland captain Paul Stirling.