It's time for a fresh start in the shortest format for both Ireland and South Africa after they experienced contrasting fortunes at this year's T20 World Cup. While Ireland (admittedly in a tough pool) lost all three matches they played - including one to Canada, South Africa went where they have never gone before and reached the final, only to fall agonisingly short of the trophy.
Their snatching-victories-from-the-jaws-of-defeat run lasted eight matches and proved they can step up when the moment calls for it, but maybe not always otherwise. They were blanked 3-nil by West Indies either side of the tournament and while those defeats could be explained by South Africa not having their first-choice squads available, they also pose worrying questions about their depth.
Mining the talent pool is top of mind for both teams as they look ahead to the 2026 edition of the T20 World Cup, which means there are certain boxes they'll hope to tick in this two-match series.
By the way, if you're wondering why these matches are taking place in the UAE, and not in either of the two countries playing, it is because Ireland were due to host this series and had to come up with what their CEO Warren Deutrom called a "creative way to overcome infrastructure constraints," which is another way of saying it's more affordable to play in the UAE. If that sounds difficult to believe, consider that Ireland do not have a permanent home stadium and have to pay rent and bring in temporary facilities every time they play at home, and it'll all add up. While Ireland are building a new stadium that will be functioning by 2028, the fact that Abu Dhabi is more economical as a venue currently tells you something.
Will conditions be the great leveller?
The almost-40 degree heat and slow, dry surfaces are foreign to both South Africa and Ireland, and could bring the sides closer together. As things stand, they are as far apart as two teams could on the T20I competitive scale as South Africa have won all five of the games they've played against each other. They also have the advantage of having been in the UAE for an extra week so the heat feels "a little bit more normal," according to captain Aiden Markram.
For their part, Ireland are not complaining about the lack of home comforts, as they see the importance of experience in conditions they will come across at the next T20 World Cup, hosted by Sri Lanka and India, in particular.
"It helps for a number of reasons. We play a lot away from home now, so it's getting used to new conditions again and we're playing a lot on the subcontinent where huge competitions are going to happen in the future, and the next T20 World Cup is the main one," Paul Stirling, Ireland's captain said. "It has its advantages and I think as an organisation we need to get that balance right. You want to play in front of your home supporters and your home crowd but I think it's okay if you occasionally play the odd away game, which is your home series."
Ireland exploring top-order options - and South Africa should too
Andy Balbirnie is Ireland's leading run-scorer in T20 cricket this year, with 298 runs from 12 matches, but has been left out of these matches as Ireland focus on "introducing a new dynamic," according to national selector Andrew White. Balbirnie's strike rate of 113.74 from his 12 matches in 2024 suggests Ireland want more firepower upfront. Heinrich Malan confirmed that Lorcan Tucker, with a T20I strike rate of 123.32, will open the batting for the first time with Harry Tector, Curtis Campher and Neil Rock to come in at No.3, 4 and 5.
Likewise, South Africa may find themselves at a crossroads with Reeza Hendricks, who has struggled through much of this year. He has only gone past 20 five times in fifteen T20Is and faces competition from Matthew Breetzke and Ryan Rickelton. The problem is neither Breetzke nor Rickelton, who have dominated run-charts at domestic level, have made the most of his international opportunities. Breetzke has a top score of 19 from six T20Is and Rickelton a top score of 27 from six T20Is. This is the series for at least two of three to make the opening spot their own.
Some relief from spin for South Africa (or maybe not)
Just last week, South Africa registered their second-worst performance against spin in any bilateral series where at least 40 overs of spin were bowled at them. Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Nangeyalia Kharote and Mohammad Nabi took 16 South African wickets between them in three ODIs. What was clear from the way the South African batters were dismissed was their struggles in reading the turn, especially against Ghazanfar, a mystery offspinner, who coach Rob Walter said they had not seen before.
They won't want to use the same excuse against Ireland and to a large extent, they can't. South Africa have played against George Dockrell and Ben White and the other spinner Gareth Delaney, has not made the trip after suffering what captain Stirling called an "unfortunate accident," in the last week. That leaves left-arm spinner Matthew Humphreys, who has one T20I cap, and Gavin Hoey, who has flown in for the T20Is, as an unknown. And, no disrespect to Ireland, but this quartet is not expected to pose quite the same challenge as Afghanistan, even in what could be favourable conditions. This may be South Africa's opportunity to re-find their confidence against spin and show that things are not quite as bad as they seemed against Afghanistan.
Who's got the variations?
Seamers have been seen to suffer on surfaces in the UAE unless they have an adequate number of variations, and it will be interesting to see how they approach things in this series. Lungi Ngidi set the tone in the series against Afghanistan, in Sharjah, where he delivered a selection of offcutters and proved difficult to get away. South Africa didn't use either of Ottneil Baartman or Lizaad Williams in those matches, but both are capable of doing the same and should be given a run in these games.
Ireland are without left-armer Josh Little, who is at the CPL, and will lean on Craig Young and Fionn Hand, both swing bowlers who may be able to make things happen under lights but all eyes will be on Mark Adair. He enjoys the challenge of the death overs, has a wide range of deliveries in his arsenal and is a genuine wicket-taker, who last year became the sixth-fastest to 100 in T20Is. Expect some fireworks.