Who is Barry McCarthy? 5 things to know about Ireland all-rounder who smashed an unbeaten 51 vs India in 1st T20I

Barry McCarthy earned the fans' attention in the first T20I of the India vs Ireland series on Friday by smashing an unbeaten half-century. Coming out to bat at number eight when Ireland were down to 59/6 in the 11th over, McCarthy scored 51 runs off just 33 balls.

His half-century helped the home side post a 139-run total on the board in Dublin. McCarthy smacked four fours and four sixes in his entertaining innings. Not many fans knew about McCarthy's talent ahead of the first T20I between India and Ireland.

Before Barry McCarthy further impresses fans with his fantastic performances, here's a look at the five things you should know about the Ireland player.

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#1 Barry McCarthy made his T20I debut in India

McCarthy has represented Ireland in 43 T20I matches so far, where he has scalped 42 wickets and scored 269 runs. He came into the limelight earlier this week after a half-century against India.

Interestingly, McCarthy's debut T20I match also came on Indian soil. He received his maiden T20I cap on March 10, 2017 ahead of a match against Afghanistan in Greater Noida.

He bowled a dream spell of 4/33 on debut, scalping the wickets of Mohammad Shahzad, Najeeb Tarakai, Asghar Afghan, and Mohammad Nabi. Despite McCarthy's brilliance, Ireland lost that match by 17 runs via D/L method.

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#2 Barry McCarthy's sister also played international cricket

Barry has a younger sister named Louise McCarthy, who represented Ireland from 2010 to 2017. Born in Dublin, Louise played 28 ODIs and 28 T20Is for the Ireland women's team.

She scored 75 runs and picked up 17 wickets in ODIs, whereas in T20Is, she managed 47 runs and 12 wickets. Her last appearance for Ireland came in an ODI match against India on February 10, 2017 in Colombo.

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#3 Barry McCarthy leaked 63 runs on T20 debut

While McCarthy started his T20I career with a four-wicket haul against Afghanistan, his T20 debut was a forgettable outing for him. Playing for Durham in a match against Worcestershire, McCarthy gave away 63 runs in four overs.

Tom Kohler-Cadmore smashed a 54-ball 127 for Worcestershire in that match. McCarthy conceded six fours and four sixes in the 24 deliveries that he bowled.

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#4 Barry McCarthy missed out on a world record last year

McCarthy showcased his batting talent against India earlier this week. Prior to that, he stunned the Irish domestic cricket followers by smacking a ton while batting at number nine for Leinster against the Norther Knights on July 4, 2022.

He scored 110 runs off just 59 balls. His knock consisted of four fours and 10 sixes. Carlos Brathwaite owns the world record for the highest individual score (113) at number nine or below in ODIs. McCarthy narrowly missed out on breaking that record.

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#5 He mistook The Great Khali for Big Show

In March 2019, famous Indian pro wrestler The Great Khali caught up with the Ireland cricket team. McCarthy was a part of the touring party, and he clicked a photo with The Great Khali.

However, it looks like McCarthy did not follow WWE closely as a fan. In the Instagram post with Khali, he referred to him as Big Show.