Ireland men's head coach Heinrich Malan agrees to extend contract for two years

Dublin [Ireland], May 27 : Heinrich Malan extended his role as Ireland's head coach for two years until mid-2027.
The decision to keep him in the top spot has been taken with an eye towards the 2027 Cricket World Cup.
The focus during Malan's extended time as the head coach will be to ensure Ireland's qualification in the marquee tournament that is scheduled to be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
The 43-year-old took charge of the Ireland men's team in March 2022 on a three-year contract. During his tenure, Ireland managed to qualify for the 2022 and 2024 T20 World Cup. But they missed out on a spot in the 2023 Cricket World Cup in India after suffering defeat in the World Cup qualifiers.
Before departing with his team for the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA, Malan expressed his excitement for the coming three years as he aims to develop the Ireland team across all three formats.
"I am delighted with the extension as it provides the squad and coaching staff a great deal more certainty as we build upon the foundations we have put in place over the last two years," Malan said in a statement released by Cricket Ireland.
"We are now a three-format squad and - despite our smaller talent pool to draw from compared to other Full Members - we have been gradually building a sustainable structure that ensures we can continue to compete and improve on all three fronts," he added.
Malan talked about his aim to cultivate a better game sense in the team and create an environment where his players can play freely with confidence.
"One area I have been keen on developing is our players being able to better read the game situation and then, where they judge it appropriate, to have the freedom and confidence to try and impose their style and instincts on the game. Some of our younger players are literally learning this ability on the job, which means there are days they will fail, but failure is a key part of the learning process," Malan said.
"What we as coaches are looking for is evidence that those unsuccessful experiences are analysed and understood by the player and become part of the experience they can draw upon in future matches. This work has borne fruit in two successful T20 World Cup qualifying campaigns and our recent Test success. But we are all conscious that we've missed out on playing in the last two 50-over world cups, and qualification for the 2027 tournament will be one of the focus areas across the next three years," added Malan.