He writes, "What an amazing time for you all and very much deserved.
Ireland has now made it to the top 12 one day cricket nations of the world on the ICC LG ODI rankings. This really is a magnificent achievement by you all. To reach this milestone you have two ODI wins, plus a tie versus Full Members from 9 such matches over a 1 year period. To put this into perspective, when they were elevated to Test status:
Sri Lanka had achieved 1 ODI win vs a Full Member from 5 matches over a 4 year period.
Zimbabwe had won 2 ODI games vs Full Members from 20 matches over a 9 year period.
Bangladesh won 1 ODI game against a Full Memebr from 33 games over a 14 year period.
For interests sake,Kenya, (already on the table) currently has 8 ODI wins against Full Members from 72 matches over an 11 year period.
Right now, your record/number of wins & ties against Full Members in this CWC 2007 is actually better than that of England, West IndiesandBangladesh.
We are all very proud of your achievements here at Lord's and throughout Europe and the ICC Development Program, and this huge success is much deserved. The game of cricket in Ireland will never be the same again, and you have played such an important part. The next two years will of course be hugely important in sustaining this great achievement, but you are in very good hands."
Best Wishes
Richard Holdsworth
