John Mooney

A talented and experienced allrounder, John Mooney made his First-Class debut for Ireland in 2004. He was also a part of Ireland's squad for the 2000 Under-19 World Cup and has captained the Ireland A team in the past. He made his ODI debut in Ireland's inaugural match in the format. He took three wickets in the game and scored a handy 30 with the bat. He was a part of the Irish squad in the 2007 World Cup. After the World Cup, Mooney withdrew from the team in order to complete his electrical apprenticeship.

Returning back to cricket a year later, Mooney captained Ireland A in the 2008 European Cricket Championship, guiding his team to victory in the competition and was also named player of the tournament. In January 2010, Mooney became one of the six players to be awarded a full-time contract by Cricket Ireland. He was also named as \"Ireland Player of the Year\" for the same year. In 42 games, he scored 818 runs across all formats, and took 12 wickets with an average of 30.92. Mooney was then a part of the 2011 World Cup squad as well and performed brilliantly in the tournament. He hit the winning runs in Ireland's historic win over England and was their leading wicket-taker. In the Intercontinental Cup that followed, Mooney registered his career-best figures of 10 for 81 in the final against Afghanistan.

In 2013, following the death of Margaret Thatcher, Mooney tweeted: \"I hope it was slow and painful\" on his official account. This insensitive tweet resulted in a three-match ban from Cricket Ireland. He struggled throughout the year with depression and was not able to perform to his full potential. In an explosive interview in September 2014, Mooney admitted his on-going struggle with psychological problems, stating that he even contemplated suicide at one point. However, he made a gritty 96 against Scotland the next day, just missing out on his maiden ODI ton.

Although his form has suffered in the last couple of years, Mooney still remains an integral part of the Irish team. With him back to enjoying cricket, Ireland will fancy their chances of churning out yet another competitive performance in the 2015 World Cup as well.

By Sonali Dhulap