Cricket coach Phil Simmons aims for knockout stages

Cricket World Cup: Coach Phil Simmons is confident Ireland can qualify for the knockout stages of the World Cup next month.

Ireland go into the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, which starts on 14 February and runs for six weeks, in good form.

Three wins from their six matches against the West Indies, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Zimbabwe, India and Pakistan could be enough to see Ireland progress to the quarter-finals, although Simmons is wary of cherry-picking the matches against the UAE, Zimbabwe and a West Indies side riven by internal divisions after the omission of key players Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard.