T20 World Cup 2026: Injury rules out Ireland captain Paul Stirling for remainder of tournament; replacement called up

The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 on Friday approved Sam Topping as a replacement for Paul Stirling in the Ireland squad.

The said committee consists of Wasim Khan (Chair, ICC General Manager – Cricket), Gaurav Saxena (ICC General Manager – Events & Corporate Communications, IBC representative), Hemang Amin (Tournament Director, host representative), and Shaun Pollock (Independent nominee).

The Ireland captain has been ruled out for sustaining knee ligament damage while fielding during Ireland’s match against Australia on Wednesday, February 11. Apparently, the experienced campaigner ended up aggravating the niggle while running a quick single in the same match.

Topping, uncapped, joins Ireland’s 15-player squad with immediate effect. The 20-year-old is a left-handed opening batter who last year featured for Ireland A in its four-day match against Afghanistan A in Abu Dhabi.

READ: T20 World Cup 2026: Kishan savours redemption arc with purple patch in T20Is

Ireland’s Director of High Performance, Graeme West, said it was a bitter blow to lose someone of Stirling’s experience.

“Paul Stirling underwent an assessment and a scan after the Australian match, which has subsequently revealed ligament damage—as such, he has been ruled out of the remainder of the T20 World Cup. Paul will shortly return home for rest and rehabilitation, ahead of the home summer,” West said.

“To replace Paul, we have called up Sam Topping, who is able to provide immediate cover, as he is a short flight away in Chennai. Sam has been with the Northern Knights training squad and has been playing and training in similar conditions to Sri Lanka. The skill set he offers provides cover across a number of areas within the squad, which is important as Ben Calitz is also carrying a knock to his hand after the last match.”