William Porterfield: Ireland’s dazzling skipper
Ireland’s left-handed skipper William Porterfield has played some of the most dynamic and inspiring cricket for his team. He has been a key part of the Irish rise to the top of Associate cricket and had long been earmarked for a major role in the team. In
recent times, Ireland has suffered from a drain of top class players like Eoin http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Morgan-c77707 that have left the team in search of higher honours. Porterfield’s role is increasingly significant, as he is the leader and will have to perform at his best for the ICC
World Cup 2011.
The 26-year-old, dazzling Irish cricketer is a promising and splendid left-handed opener who can also contribute with his calculated off-breaks. Porterfield took part in the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh in 2004 and then spent time at the ICC Winter
Training Camp in 2006, later captaining the Ireland A team that year. He soon graduated to the full and provided a solid stand at the opening position. Porterfield moved through the age-groups and always seemed destined for a major role in Ireland's future
as he began his international career. He joined the senior Irish cricket side in 2006 and was appointed as Ireland’s captain at the start of 2008.
Porterfield started his One Day International career making a bold statement by scoring two centuries for his team. In the 2007 World Cup, his 85 run performance contributed to their win against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747. The stunning opening batsman was the leading run-scorer
for Ireland in the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 1 in 2007, scoring tons against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Kenya-c752.
He was Ireland’s leading run-scorer at the ICC World T20 2009 with 100 runs at an outstanding strike-rate of 97.08. Porterfield scored 515 runs at an average of 57.22 in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2009 in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 and won the Associate and Affiliate
Player of the Year award in the same year. His performance put him in the spot-light, as various county teams began to take notice of this dynamic player.
The Irish skipper has the capability to pace the innings and the aspiration to never be intimidated by some of the bigger teams in cricket. He is the highest Irish run getter in ODI’s with 1371 runs at an average of 33.43 in 44 matches. The player has a
tremendous rate of transferring his 50s into hundreds, as he has made 4 fifties and 5 centuries in his ODI career. Porterfield had a prolific year in 2009, as he scored over 400 runs at an average of 59.14 with two hundreds and two fifties. He played a vital
role scoring a 50 during Ireland's memorable stay at the 2007 World Cup, where they reached the Super Eights following a stunning victory against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 on St Patrick's Day.
According to Kyle McCallan, former Ireland all-rounder, “Porty has become an outstanding opening batsman, scoring more one day hundreds for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ireland-c751 than anyone and an important part of the batting line-up”.
Porterfield is a sharp fielder as well and one can describe him as one of the best fielders in the World Cup. The Irish side depends heavily on Porterfield, as he is their strike batsman and skipper. He has to perform out of his skin to lift his team up
and if he provides stability at the top of the order, then the side will undoubtedly post challenging totals against every opponent. All the Irish hopes and responsibilities rest on the shoulders of Porterfield, as he must now show his tremendous abilities
and guide his team through the tournament. It will be exciting to watch this amazing player, as he takes on the world’s best teams all fighting for the elusive trophy.
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