Ed Joyce - Born and Bred Irishman

In a continent with a singular cricketing powerhouse nestled in England, Ed Joyce belongs to the rarest breed of cricketers who have made their way from the subordinate to the supreme. What makes him even rarer is the fact that he made his way back to the country of his origin. While playing matches for Ireland in the ICC trophy, Joyce became a star for the Irish amassing 758 runs in 14 matches and yet, the desire to play cricket at the highest level was harbored in his mind and after having completed his English residency qualifications in 2005.

Joyce ironically made his ODI debut for England against Ireland with his brother Dominic playing for the Irish. A T20I debut followed soon after and yet, it was the elusive Test debut, something which worked as the biggest motivation behind Joyce’s decision to make the shift from Ireland to England which never came, his case is yet another example which can be attributed to the famous acronym – “so near yet so far”.

He was named in the team for the 2006/07 Ashes series and yet didn’t get to play any of the matches, he did, however, play the ODIs, the highlight for him was the ODI century against Australia at the SCG coming in a winning cause. A less consistent World Cup of 2007 followed and while Joyce was effective against non-Test playing nations, his lack of consistency and more importantly becoming the victim of the repercussions for England’s dismal performance in the World Cup saw him being ousted from the side until further considerations might arise!

A domestic shift followed soon after as after severing his ties with Middlesex, he moved to Sussex and yet, despite being an influential member of the side, the elusive and much-anticipated Test call-up never came again. From thereon, the fluency and unprecedented amounts of consistency achieved by Ed Joyce in the highest stages of club cricket is something few can match in the history of the game and yet, it was really a national treasure for Ireland, who had been lost in an English county for the desire to play Test cricket, long regarded and perhaps rightly so as the pinnacle of the game was simply too much to give up for Joyce.

Also read – Cricketers who have played international cricket for two countries

Having realized that the much-craved Test call-up for England is not in the offing, Joyce expressed his hope to don the Irish colors once again after a gap of five years, the main motivation being the desire to contribute his own expertise to Ireland’s fortunes in the upcoming cricket World Cup in 2011. He was soon granted special dispensation by the ICC to represent his country of birth in the tournament.

In a slew of statements, Joyce bared all to lay rest to the speculations claiming that the switch back was for personal interests. Joyce asserted the playing Test cricket which is regarded as the pinnacle of the game was the sole reason behind his decision to move to England and yet, having realized that the elusive Test debut may never come, Joyce wanted to play for the country of his origin as he is first and foremost an Irishman.

“When I made the decision in 2001 to try and play for England, it was with a view to trying to play Test cricket which is the pinnacle of the game and which of course Ireland doesn’t play. While I strongly believe I’m good enough to play Test cricket for England, I’ve taken the decision now to try and play for Ireland again. There are a few reasons for this, with the most obvious being that I’m a born and bred Irishman. Secondly, I feel I have a lot to offer to Irish cricket. I had a very successful 2009 with Sussex winning the Most Valuable Player award for the Friends Provident trophy and also two winners medals in theTwenty20 Cup and Nat West Pro40 competition. I feel I’m playing the best cricket of my career and would like to bring this form with me to help Ireland be even more successful on the world stage, a success which I am committed to running in tandem with my Sussex career, in the same way that other Irish players have satisfied club and country commitments really well.”

— Ed Joyce, May 2010

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A good World Cup in 2011 which produced some of the most celebrated outings for Ireland on the international cricketing stage and Ed Joyce’s instrumental contribution in the same ensured him full integration into the Irish cricketing setup. He has since been a regular in the team and has had a role to play in some of Ireland’s most celebrated victories against some of the powerhouses of international cricket.

Running in tandem is his first-class stint with Sussex where he’s going from strength to strength and has amassed over 17,000 runs in the first-class format along with 9500 runs in the List – A format thus establishing himself as a seasoned campaigner in the English county setup. His most notable contribution to Irish cricket lies in the fact that when Ireland causing an “upset” is in the offing, Joyce makes sure that he arrives to the party on time, his most significant contributions in Irish colors have resulted in a winning cause, many of them being against the premier teams in international cricket.

Statistically speaking, Joyce with over 2100 runs in the ODI format is still a rookie in the ODI game and yet, his paramount success in the legitimized and acclaimed county setup with several international players trying to hone their skills in English conditions means that he is definitely, one of the best in an entire generation of cricketers.

Joyce is 37 at the moment but looking at the way he’s carrying on having just crossed the 2000-run mark in international cricket, with a series-leveling knock of 160 not out against Afghanistan may well mean that he idolizes Misbah-ul-Haq. If he does, in fact, continue playing on till his early forties, it will definitely be a tremendous gain for Ireland and international cricket.

Also read – West Indies v India – A drawn Test and frustration mounts!