Ireland batsman PJ Moor to face land of his birth Zimbabwe at Stormont Test match

Ireland batsman PJ Moor has come an awful long way to play cricket at Stormont, where Zimbabwe are the visitors for the first home Test match in six years, starting tomorrow.

As he lines up with his teammates for Ireland’s Call, he will resist the temptation to sing along with Simudzai Mureza wedu WeZimbabwe. That’s because Peter Joseph Moor’s last international cricket match in Northern Ireland was in the red of Zimbabwe, five years ago.

‘The first conversation about playing for Ireland happened soon after that series in 2019,’ says Moor, now 33.

‘After that series I went across to Lord’s to watch the Ireland v England Test match and bumped into (then Ireland head coach) Graham Ford in the pavilion.

We had a good conversation around cricket and I let them know that I had an Irish passport.

‘At the time Zimbabwe Cricket was going through a lot of turmoil, there was a bit of government interference and the ICC had banned ZC. Zimbabwe weren’t playing any Tests and there was talk that we were going to be banned indefinitely. The players didn’t know what was going to happen and suddenly I had this opportunity. It went from there.

‘I still have huge respect for the players in Zimbabwe cricket and I would never bad mouth Zimbabwe because that’s where I learnt all my skills that created my livelihood.

‘When I got into the system first I was keen and very eager to play but as my career progressed I could see how it operated behind the scenes and it was a very difficult environment.

‘My immediate family all still live in Zimbabwe, but I absolutely love Ireland, I’ve really taken to it, I’ve got a lot of family down in the south of Ireland in Clonakilty, my grandmother was from Tipperary and all my cousins live down there. I get on really well with everyone in Irish cricket circles and I’m so grateful I’ve made this decision.’

Moor had played two seasons as a pro in CIYMS in Belfast, and two at YMCA in Dublin up to 2015. So, he knew the scene when he packed his bags and committed to Ireland, joining Clontarf and playing interpro for Munster. Ireland was in the middle of a near four-year hiatus from Tests, but when they finally came around Moor was in the team.

A Test match debut is something granted to a very small number of people – 2,843 men since 1877 – and Moor is one of a tiny number who got to have two. He played the first of his eight games for Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in 2016, cap No.99, and the first of his five for Ireland in Bangladesh, in April last year, cap No.21.

‘I can say without doubt that my Test debut for Ireland was the proudest moment of my career,’ says Moor.

‘Nobody except my family and close friends know the path I took, it involved a lot of sacrifice, a lot of ups and downs to get to that point and I think that was definitely my proudest moment and the one I will never forget.

‘I was proud to play for Zimbabwe but I think the Irish debut will stay with me forever.’

After all the pain and struggles, Moor’s arrival in Test cricket has not been all he hoped. In 10 innings for Ireland he has scored just 88 runs and has yet to reach 20. This week’s match has the smack of a last chance saloon, with Stephen Doheny in excellent form and providing strong competition for the top order batters.

‘Not to make any excuses – you’re expected to perform – but I had some tough conditions and some tough roles so far in the Test side,’ says Moor. ‘It has been a little bit of a tricky start but I’d like to hope that this week I can cement my place.’

A long-time member of MCC, getting to play a Test at Lord’s last summer was very special to him, although nerves almost got the better of him.

At 6am that morning a friend from Dublin, Shammy Ahmed, was awoken by a text in his hotel close to Lord’s. ‘Coffee?’ it enquired, and so he dressed to meet Moor who couldn’t sleep and was out for a walk.

‘That was the first game of significance I played there, and I managed to bring my folks over, it was something I’d dreamt about as a kid. I love playing Test cricket because of the history, I love putting on the whites and the baggy (cap).’

He’s keen on history – ‘I’ve read books about the Rhodesian Bush War, to better understand Zimbabwe. I enjoy politics and reading about what’s happening around the world.’

Like most sportspeople, Moor also enjoys most sports, especially playing golf. His father, also Peter, was a racehorse breeder back home, owning a filly, Ipe Tombe, that won South African classics and the Dubai Duty Free Stakes.

‘I’ve been to Leopardstown but I follow the South African racing more,’ he admits. ‘My older brother Richard started a betting company back home, Moor World of Sport, which has become the family business, recently moving into Zambia. I’d like to get involved, we all love our sport and there’s scope to keep growing the company in southern Africa.’

Moor played domestic cricket last winter in Zimbabwe and will be a valuable voice in Andrew Balbirnie’s ear at Stormont. He’s already marked our card on some new faces.

‘There’s two kids in the Zimbabwe squad who had a really good season last year, Dion Myers and Jonathan Campbell. Not a lot is known about them over here but they’ve a lot of potential.’

For a man with an excellent one-day record, Moor has been unfairly pigeonholed as a red ball player, and has had few chances to break that notion.

‘Yeah,’ he sighs, ‘One of the frustrations has been the lack of cricket leading into the national side – there’s a handful of games for Munster and hardly any A-team games. So it’s quite difficult to knock the door down. The Irish white ball side has been doing quite well the last few years so they’re a very settled team.’

But first Moor will need to nail down a Test spot, and that means scoring runs this week in Stormont against old team-mates.

You wouldn’t bet against him.