Broad view
India easily won the first T20I on Sunday despite the absence of several key players and Harry Tector’s brisk 29-ball half-century in a 12-over shootout. In the run-up to the T20 World Cup in Australia this October, India will hope that the weather cooperates despite the fact that Tuesday is also expected to be rainy.
Tearaway Umran Malik’s international debut was lackluster; he wasted 18 runs in his single over by randomly moving the ball around. Tector made four with a half-volley through midfield and six with a 145 kph bouncer. However, Deepak Hooda capitalized on his opportunity in his debut as a T20 opener by scoring an unbeaten 47 off 29 balls. Hooda is one of the IPL’s most explosive middle-order batsmen, and on Sunday, when he replaced Ruturaj Gaikwad, he showed that he could also bat at the top of the order.
Will Malik have a second opportunity in the second T20I? Will Rahul Tripathi receive his first international call-up if Gaikwad, a teammate from Maharashtra, is unable to fully heal from a calf injury?
Ireland requires a stronger foundation than their top order’s 22 for 3 total. In swinging circumstances, Paul Stirling may or may not succeed, therefore it is up to Andy Balbirnie and Gareth Delany to stop Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s first spell.
With the new ball, Josh Little and Mark Adair were penalized for bowling too short, and Craig Young acknowledged that Ireland didn’t hit their lengths.
Young remarked after the first game, “None of us are nearly [Bhuvneshwar] Kumar; we don’t have the skills those boys have but we are lucky that we know Malahide very well and we know the lengths to bowl, even though we don’t always hit them straight away. “Remember, you have a little margin and you can’t go too full or they’ll blow you over your head. Most of the time, we got the line right, but the length was our downfall.”
The margin between the two sides might be somewhat reduced if Ireland’s powerplay performed better with both the bat and the ball.
Getting Attention
Yuzvendra Chahal posed a threat going into the two-match T20I series, but Ireland skipper Balbirnie was very cautious and hoped the conditions wouldn’t be too favorable for spin. On Sunday, the Malahide track gave more swing than turn, and Chahal required three sweaters to get warm, but he still bowled a three-over session with no boundaries. His 1 for 11 was the evening’s most cost-effective spell.
The game was all but over when Conor Olphert entered the fray during India’s chase’s seventh over. Even though he only played a minor role on his debut, Hooda shovelled his first ball in international cricket for six. The plans of new coach Heinrich Malan for the home summer, which also includes trips from three other Full Members—New Zealand, South Africa, and Afghanistan—rely heavily on his heavy lengths and bounce.
Probable Team Ireland
Paul Stirling, Andy Balbirnie (captain), Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, George Dockrell, Seven Mark Adair, Andy McBrine, Craig Young, Josh Little, Conor Olphert.
Probable Team India
Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad/Rahul Tripathi/Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hoodas, Hardik Pandya (capt), Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Umran Malik, and Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Ireland has faced India in four T20Is, losing each match.
In T20Is, Bhuvneshwar set a record by taking 34 wickets in the powerplay. On Sunday, he outperformed Tim Southee (33) and Samuel Badree (33).
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