Ross Adair

Profile details

FULL NAME

Ross Adair

TEAMS

MI Emirates

The rugby player who became an opener

Adair played professional rugby for Ulster before an injury forced him out of the sport, and he brought the rugby player's mentality with him into cricket: attack, always. He is an ultra-aggressive opening batter who looks to clear the ropes from the first over, and his strike rate for the Northern Knights — above 150 — shows how he plays.

• Role: Batter
• Team: MI Emirates
• Batting: Right-handed
• Bowling: Slow left-arm orthodox
• Born: 21 April 1994, Holywood, Northern Ireland

For MI Emirates he is a top-order option who can take the pressure off the middle order by scoring quickly in the powerplay. If he gets going, the opposition's new-ball plans are finished inside six overs. If he gets out early, the side still has Pooran, Bairstow and Perera to come.

A hundred against South Africa

Adair made his T20I debut for Ireland against Zimbabwe in January 2023, and his breakthrough came in September 2024, when he scored 100 off 58 balls against South Africa in Ireland's first T20 win over the Proteas. It was the innings that announced him as an international opener rather than a domestic slogger.

He has since played at the T20 World Cup for Ireland and in franchise cricket, including the European T20 Premier League, where he scored 151 runs at a strike rate above 170. His brother Mark Adair is also an Ireland international, and the two have shared the field for their country — a proud moment for a family steeped in Irish sport.

The MI Emirates around him

Adair is the rugby player turned Ireland opener, and he bats like it: ultra-aggressive, always attacking, and looking to take the bowling on from the first ball.

His breakthrough came in September 2024, when he scored 100 off 58 balls against South Africa in Ireland's first T20 win over the Proteas. That is the opener's job in this side: fire in the powerplay and the middle order bats with freedom, or fall early and the depth behind him still covers the innings.

What’s next

Three league games to start the season for MI Emirates, then the run to the playoffs. The full list of every ILT20 fixture is on the ILT20 Schedule page.

• Match 1 — Desert Vipers vs MI Emirates: Saturday 21 November 2026, evening session, Dubai International Stadium, Dubai.
• Match 5 — Gulf Giants vs MI Emirates: Tuesday 24 November 2026, evening session, Dubai.
• Match 7 — Abu Dhabi Knight Riders vs MI Emirates: Thursday 26 November 2026, evening session, Abu Dhabi.

Qualifier 1 on Tuesday 16 December, the Eliminator on Wednesday 17 December, Qualifier 2 on Friday 18 December in Sharjah, and the final on Sunday 20 December in Dubai.

Follow every ILT20 result as it happens on SialTV, with the points table updated after every match day.