Andrew Balbirnie: New Ireland skipper’s ‘double-check’ after captaincy call

Balbirnie’s impressive development as a player over the past number of years made his an obvious chance to succeed Porterfield but the new skipper is mindful of the unique elements of cricket captaincy.

“It’s not like rugby and football where you tend to go to your best player,” continued Balbirnie.

“In cricket you are dealing with two different formats and a lot of players.

“You are on tour a lot so you have to manage a lot of players when you are away.

“You have to have a good relationship with the coaches to talk about the tactics that are involved.

“My style of captaincy may be very different to William’s and a lot of guys have played under him for some time.

“It may take a bit of time to get used to for some of the players but I’ve known the guys a long time and I think I have everyone’s backing.

“I want my performances to keep getting better so people can maybe look at me and get inspired.

“I want to be compassionate. I’m aware of how tough a game we play so it is going to be difficult and a lot of young guys are going to come up through the ranks.

“I want to nurture the young guys and make sure the transition into the senior team is made easier.