Lorcan Tucker | Batting in T20 cricket can be a bit of a rollercoaster

UAE's ABU DHABI The first T20I between Ireland and South Africa takes place tomorrow. The vice captain of the Irish men's team was speaking today from the team hotel in Abu Dhabi.

During the 2022 T20I series in Bristol, you had some success against South Africa. Has your game altered significantly since then?

"I believe that was when I first started in my new position at the top of the T20I order. Since then, I've discovered a lot about my personal style and what suits me. I had a lot of failures and trial and error with various approaches at first, but now I feel more comfortable with what I'm attempting to do in the format. The fast-paced nature of T20 cricket makes batting somewhat of a rollercoaster, but since Heinrich [Malan] took over, it's been amazing to be a part of our progress in this format."

Throughout your T20I career, you have batted in a variety of places. How essential is your versatility to the team?

"I believe that the majority of our team's hitters currently see frequent changes in both order and position. In my opinion, it's critical to assimilate into a new function as soon as possible in order to make the necessary contributions that the team is seeking for. After you are needed somewhere else, the cycle resumes. For us, this holds true for all formats, and it becomes increasingly pertinent as players accumulate experience.

What are the changes between the current squad and the one that played SA in 2022?

"I believe that team and mine have a lot in common. It seemed very new at the time, but now that we've played a lot of Twenty20 cricket, we have a group of more seasoned guys. Although it's bad that we now have a few injuries and guys out of the lineup, this presents an opportunity for others to contribute, and I'm excited about that.

Naturally, it's critical to get off to a strong start in this T20 World Cup cycle. What message has Heinrich given the team?

Heinrich has probably wanted us to hone our abilities and strategies by using all of the experience we've accumulated over the previous cycle. We've had a lot of success over the past two or three years, so it's critical to apply all of that information in what should be a successful [T20I World Cup] cycle for us." 

Details about the series, the squads and broadcast here.