New Delhi. After the defeat in the first match against Ireland, the Indian team will take the field on Sunday with the intention of saving its reputation in the second and final match. This Indian team, led by new captain Shreyas Iyer and adorned with star players, will be under immense pressure to not only level the series but also answer the critics with its performance. The crushing defeat in the first match has shocked Indian cricket fans, because it was Ireland’s first win over India in history in any format.
This is the first international tour of the Indian team after winning the T20 World Cup title. This young team, which came on the field with the title of World Champion, did not expect that host Ireland would force them to kneel like this. In the first T20 match, Ireland played brilliantly and gave a strong target of 182 runs to India to win. In reply, the Indian batting order fell apart like a pack of cards and the entire team was reduced to just 148 runs. This historic win of 33 runs has boosted the morale of the Irish team and now they would not like to miss the golden opportunity of winning their first series against India.
The litmus test of captaincy and form of captain Shreyas Iyer
This match is very important for the newly appointed captain of the Indian team, Shreyas Iyer. Iyer, who was returning to T20 international cricket after a long gap of 963 days, had a very disappointing start as the captain of the national team. He could neither impress with his captaincy nor make any significant contribution with the bat. Just before the crucial five-match series against England starting on Wednesday at Chester-le-Street, Iyer would like to end the Ireland tour with a resounding win to keep the team’s morale high.
Batting disintegration is the biggest concern
The biggest weakness of the Indian team in this match proved to be its top batting order. Wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson, who was the hero of India’s title journey in the T20 World Cup three months ago, disappointed a lot and returned to the pavilion after playing just four balls. His partner Ishan Kishan and captain Shreyas Iyer himself could not show the courage to stay on the pitch. Only opener Abhishek Sharma continued his aggressive style and gave a fast start to the team, but he did not get support from any batsman from the other end. Abhishek’s dismissal immediately after the end of the powerplay proved to be the biggest blow to the Indian innings.
After this, the pressure of required run-rate kept on increasing, which middle-order batsmen Tilak Verma, Washington Sundar and Shivam Dubey completely failed to bear. Jai Mundhra and Matt Hallard, playing their first international match for Ireland, kept the Indian batsmen in a bind with their sharp bowling. Mundra took the big wicket of Sanju Samson on the very first ball of his career, while Hollard created panic in the Indian camp by dismissing Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and later Washington Sundar. The outcome of Sunday’s match will largely depend on what strategy the Indian batsmen use to face this young and confident Irish fast bowling attack.
Need to improve bowling, Rana is a positive aspect
The performance of Indian bowling in the first match was mixed. Fast bowler Harshit Rana, who is returning to the team after injury, showed excellent control and took three wickets for 24 runs, which was the biggest positive aspect for India. Arshdeep Singh and Akshar Patel also bowled tightly in the death overs. However, the team suffered the most loss in the overs of Prasidh Krishna and Washington Sundar. Sundar gave away 19 runs in his one over, while fast bowler Prasidh Krishna proved to be very expensive and he gave away 57 runs in his quota of 4 overs. Krishna spent 27 runs alone in the 17th over of the innings, which completely turned the match towards Ireland. In the second match, the bowling department will have to learn from these mistakes.
Less possibility of change in team composition
Even though the team had to face a crushing defeat in the first match, cricket experts believe that the management will avoid making major changes in the top order after just one defeat. This means that young sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who has scored a lot of runs in domestic cricket, may have to wait a little longer for his chance to wear the national cap. The Indian team management would like to give the players another chance to prove themselves by playing with the same combination. This match will be played from 6 pm Indian time and it will be interesting to see how the world champion team makes a comeback after learning from its mistakes.
Both teams are as follows
India: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Verma (vice captain), Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Sharma, Suryansh Shedge, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dubey, Prince Yadav, Vaibhav Suryavanshi.
Ireland: Lorcan Tucker (captain & wk), Ross Adair, Ben Calitz, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Matthew Humphreys, Gavin Hoey, Matthew Hollard, Liam McCarthy, Jai Mundra, Harry Tector, Tim Tector, Reuben Wilson.
