Join WhatsApp Channel
Stormont, Belfast: Ireland have done the impossible and beat world champions India in the first T20I of the Spinny T20I series by 34 runs at Stormont cricket club in Belfast on June 26. A packed house that expected 15-year-old wonderkid Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to make his international debut instead witnessed India’s most shocking defeat in T20 history. A stellar batting performance followed by an even more stellar bowling performance that muzzled the back-to-back T20 World Cup winners and gave Ireland their first ever win over India after 20 games across all formats.
New captain Shreyas Iyer put his side into bowl first, an odd decision seeing the bright batting conditions. Ireland weren’t complaining and started swinging. The eagerness would however often prove to get the better of them, with Ross Adair falling first. The opener skied the ball against Harshit Rana who returned after months of injury and dealt Ireland their first blow, with Sanju Samson taking the catch.
The Indian men’s team seemed to be taking cues from the women’s side, and displayed an underwhelming performance in the field. Tim Tector was dropped for eight by Shivam Dube early on, but his older brother Harry was successfully caught by Samson behind the stumps from an edge, Arshdeep Singh taking the wicket.
Tim would not also go on too long, as he’d swing blind to Iyer at mid-off against Rana. Ireland’s new skipper Lorcan Tucker and youngster Ben Calitz sporadically scored some boundaries to push through the powerplay. Calitz however fell to Dube in his first ball bowled, getting taken by Prasidh Krishna in another skied shot.
The fielding errors then clearly began to rear their heads. The usually reliable Abhishek Sharma put down Gareth Delany on just eight runs, a moment India would come to regret. Soon after, Tucker was dropped on 28 by Washington Sundar, just as he started going. Tucker would pick up a half century but then be dismissed the very next ball by a slower one from Rana, finding Tilak Varma at deep mid-wicket.
Delany went berserk, taking on Sundar in his first over and Krishna as well, scoring 46 runs in the 16th and 17th overs. Arshdeep would end his rampage before on an agonizing 49. A lower order collapse commenced in the death, but the damage was done, and Ireland finished on 182/9.
Abhishek and Samson started as per usual, going no holds barred. Indian born Jai Moondra stunned the Stormont crowd, repping the Irish green for the first time and bowling Samson out on his first ball in international cricket, getting the keeper batter to clip the ball back to his stumps. Moondra nearly got Ishan Kishan in the same over but fell just short of short third. Kishan however wouldn’t do much, as Matt Hollard would get him to swing high and get caught by Tucker.
Concerningly though, Abhishek was just not stopping, obliterating Liam McCarthy for 21 runs in his first over. Hollard would strike again, getting skipper Iyer in the last over of the powerplay, who slogged it straight to George Dockrell at deep mid-wicket. After a slow few overs, Abhishek completed his fifty still in a rapid 19 balls, but then McCarthy would have his revenge and dismiss him on the next ball, baiting him for a slog to Calitz at once again, deep mid-wicket, and India found themselves on 80/4. The troubles only just began, and India went into survival mode, but to no avail, as Varma departed after a rugged 19, getting caught by Adair off Matthew Humphreys.
Sundar fell next, giving Hollard a third with an edge to Calitz, and India’s batting was beginning to look thin. Dube and Axar Patel tried to get India back in the chase, but Moondra magic halted that, as the left arm caught and bowled Dube to take down India’s seventh. Patel’s desperation made him number eight, caught at long on by Tim Tector. Rana stood fighting alone, but even his efforts were not enough as India were bowled out on 148, and history was made.
What we learned
Overconfidence personified: Nearly four years without a series defeat, and back-to-back T20 World Cups later, India’s ego finally got the better of them. The laid-back approach in this opener put them in a position the biggest teams and stages could not even. Rash bowling followed by even rasher batting, Ireland got the opportunity to make history without even trying.
If anything, this is a much-needed reality check for coach Gautam Gambhir, who has been coasting off his T20I record as a coach for the longest time. To have that bragging right tarnished in such an embarrassing fashion is a blaring wake up call. India will not need to just bounce back in the second T20I, but absolutely demolish Ireland to redeem anything after this performance.
A new leaf: Injury stricken Ireland under new leadership of Lorcan Tucker were never expected to stand up to the mighty India, let alone beat them. With debutants Matt Hollard and Jai Moondra going toe to toe with India’s feared batting lineup, that has decimated pretty much all bowling attacks in the world, is a reality neither of them would have expected earlier in the morning.
Six of their main pacers were out injured, and these revelations showed that there is no limit to the talent in Ireland, a crucial aspect as we enter the cycle for the 2028 ICC T20 World Cup. No matter what happens in the next game, Ireland will walk away viewing this whole series as a monumental win, and maybe Irish cricket will have far more to offer in the years to come.
What they said
Ireland bowling coach, Ryan Eagleson: (On Jai Moondra and Matt Hollard) “I think for two guys to come in on their debut against the world champions and put in those sort of performances were outstanding. I loved everything about it, the way he went about it, the smartness that they showed, the pace that they bowled with. But also just that they played with a smile on their face and they enjoyed every second of it. They were really well-reported and I thought they were outstanding.”
(On the upset) “It’s a huge day. We’ve just beat the world champions in T20 cricket in our own backyard. A beautiful day at Stormont. These are the sort of games that we’ve been crying out for. Luckily, we got the weather and I think the Irish cricket team put on a show tonight.”
Abhishek Sharma, India: “The message was very clear that we needed a partnership there. But I feel, as a team, we have shown that intent from the last two years. Whenever we want to dominate, whenever we get a chance, or in any situation, we have to come out as a dominating team. So I think our plans were the same even today, but they weren’t executed well.”
(On Jai Moondra) “I think we have the same plan for all the teams. We have enough video analysts and coaches. They have enough information about all the bowlers. I wouldn’t say he was a surprise for us, but he bowled really well. The areas he bowled in (and Ireland) as a bowling unit, I feel that was much better than us and that’s how you learn as a group. I feel we got to learn a lot from him today.”
India plays Ireland in the 2nd T20I in Stormont, Belfast on Sunday, 28 June at 1:30 p.m. BST (8:30 a.m. EST; 6:00 p.m. IST).
