The Indian team, under the leadership of Hardik Pandya, will play two T20Is against Ireland before they turn to England for a full-fledged limited over series. This side touring Ireland is not the complete team that will face England; thus, it is a test of bench strength and an opportune moment for the youngsters to showcase that they deserve the chance in England too.
On the other hand, the Irish have a golden opportunity to grab the attention of the audiences and the IPL owners because a performance against India never goes unnoticed in the cricketing world.
With different goals in mind, the two teams will take the field on Sunday, June 26, for the first of the two games in Dublin.
Another round for Karthik to show his magic
For Dinesh Karthik, it is another opportunity to showcase why he deserves a chance in India’s T20 World Cup squad. Since he will be batting in similar conditions as England, the wicket-keeper batter will also enhance his chances of getting into the starting xi as a first-choice keeper even if Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul are available for selection.
Bhuvi has the perfect time to establish himself
For Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has been appointed vice-captain, it is also a chance to secure his position as the third pacer. As and when Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami are available, it will become challenging for Bhuvi to slot himself in the side as Harshal Patel would be the choice as the third pacer, with Hardik Pandya available to bowl as well.
Thus, the UP man would have to perform out of his skin to wrestle the third pacer’s place from Shami, as he is the only one that can be replaced in the Indian bowling unit based on his current form.
Hooda must grab the chances
Deepak Hooda could not get even a single game during the five-match series against South Africa as Shreyas Iyer was the first choice number three batter. Now that Iyer is not in the squad and neither is Rishabh Pant, Hooda is sure to get a chance even as Suryakumar Yadav makes a comeback. In all probability, Hooda will play at number three, with Surya coming at number four.
It is, therefore, an opportunity for Hooda to make maximum use of this chance and score big runs to increase his probability of getting a seat on Team India’s plane down under later this year.
Can Ireland take home advantage?
The home team, Ireland, would also have plans that they would want to execute to try and get the better of the Indian side. The Andre Balbirnie-led side hasn’t had a good time since the T20 World Cup in 2021, where they were ousted in the first round.
Though the Irish don’t really have an impressive record of playing at home, losing 21 out of the 34 T20Is played at home, they would look to improve upon it when they take on India, whom they have not been able to beat in the three chances so far.
India Squad for Ireland Tour
Hardik Pandya (c), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (vc), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Rahul Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, Venkatesh Iyer, Axar Patel, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Umran Malik, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi.
Ireland Squad for India series
Andrew Balbirnie (c), Harry Tector, Gareth Delany, Paul Stirling, Curtis Campher, Stephen Doheny, Lorcan Tucker, Mark Adair, George Dockrell, Joshua Little, Andy McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Conor Olphert, Craig Young.
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