The Blackcaps European excursion continues with low key important ODIs against Ireland over the next week. These fixtures are part of the ODI Super League that leads to World Cup qualification and despite being 6-0 in the Super League, a lack of fixtures puts Aotearoa outside the World Cup qualifications marker. Should Aotearoa win all three games in this series, they could jump from 10th to 4th/5th and the Irish leg sparks up a steady flow of ODI Super League games to finish the year, providing ample contextual intrigue to enjoy.

T20I cricket will also be interesting as the Euro excursion rolls along with the T20 World Cup loitering later this year. Many of the lads who play T20I cricket over the next few months won't come close to T20 World Cup selection though as another feature of this European excursion is reaching further into Blackcaps depth. This ODI series against Ireland brings some of that depth into the equation, but also brings Aotearoa's best white ball cricketers together for an enticing squad that should be able to handle Ireland's challenge.

Mitchell Santner seems unlikely to play the ODI series due to his flu. For the Blackcaps in this ODI series, Santner's absence is unlikely to impact matters. Santner has quietly dipped behind lads like Rachin Ravindra and Michael Bracewell in Tests so he would benefit from steady opportunities to command more 1st 11 game time. That opportunity now seems concentrated down to Ish Sodhi who is the lead spinner in this squad, while Bracewell and Glenn Phillips will be frothing to roll the arm over with their offies.

Aotearoa's spin landscape is a foggy vista right now in Test cricket, but in limited overs cricket this is still the Sodhi/Santner show. I'm cautious about taking insights away from Bracewell and Phillips' spin mahi in this series as there is a hefty difference in playing their roles against Ireland and Australia.

Bracewell and Phillips want to bowl spin, they want to add value to their skillset and the team. This feels like a clear difference between playing #10 in the local rugby union team then coming off the bench to cover wing at a higher level though; all these dudes can bowl spin in club or domestic cricket but doing so consistently at the international level is a different beast.

Sodhi knows that beast well and as the lead spinner, he will be crucial in forming a bowling unit alongside Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson. Adam Milne, Blair Tickner and Jacob Duffy will fill spots in the seam department, while the all-rounder pocket is based around spin (Bracewell/Phillips) not seam.

Henry is only beaten by Kyle Jamieson as the busiest kiwi Super League seamers and Henry is the best kiwi Super League seamer. Ferguson struggles to stay fit for international cricket, but when available he continues to be among Aotearoa's best bowlers. This trio of Henry, Ferguson and Sodhi feels dangerous, plus they are all competing for 1st 11 spots in a full strength squad.

The batting unit is equally as enticing as the bowlers. Tom Latham, Martin Guptill, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Phillips and Bracewell form a solid group contending for top-order spots. Latham and Guptill are the only blokes here locked into a ODI 1st 11 with the others capable of slotting into various roles; Nicholls dabbles in opening and middle order stuff.

That's all rather plain though, compared to Finn Allen. Allen is a Super Smash monster and as he became a Super Smash monster, he struggled in the longer formats - even though Allen emerged on many folks' radar with a double-hundy against a touring England team. In First-Class cricket, Allen averages 20.23 and hasn't made any Plunket Shield waves. When Allen does score runs in one-day cricket, they usually come in T20 fashion (109.72sr in List-A) and this combines for a general premise of 'good when smacking, less good when grinding'.

Allen's T20 batting prowess has seen him play zero IPL games and Allen enters this tour with 21.11avg/179.24sr in England's T20 Blast. It's hard to see Allen being selected ahead of top-order batters like Guptill, Nicholls or Young for this series against Ireland and if Allen is selected to play, it's highly likely that his role will be to crack boundaries.

There will be ample T20I cricket for Allen to make his case for T20 World Cup squad selection. Allen has had chances to prove his value outside of T20 cricket in Aotearoa domestic cricket and might get a chance to showcase his ODI batting potential against Ireland. Allen sits in a clear zone of being a fine T20 slugger, without commanding consistent opportunities elsewhere.

Wins are most important for Aotearoa against Ireland, perhaps some big wins to help the ol' net-run-rate as well. This is a fun Blackcaps squad with lots of low key x-factor and this fun vibe is amplified by various lads returning to the Blackcap or fresh lads joining the Euro excursion. As someone trying to learn and gather insights, this series is all about results rather than individual performances. Individual performances should be judged over the entire Euro excursion to set up the next ODI Super League games, as well as T20 World Cup squad options.

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Peace and love.