New York: In an electrifying start to their ICC T20 World Cup campaign, India showcased a dominant performance, securing a resounding victory over Ireland by eight wickets at Nassau County Stadium in New York on Wednesday.
Led by a commanding half-century from skipper Rohit Sharma, the Indian team exhibited prowess in all facets of the game. Rishabh Pant’s stellar added crucial runs to the scoreboard, while the fiery bowling spells delivered by Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah left the Irish batting lineup struggling to find stability.
In the run chase, Rohit, amidst a stroke of fortune with a dropped catch and a close call for bowled dismissal, survived to lead the charge. However, Kohli’s luck ran short on the challenging surface as a top edge found the hands of Benjamin White off a delivery by Mark Adair. India found themselves at 22/1 in 2.4 overs, facing an early setback in their run chase.
Sharma and Pant set about rebuilding the innings with a display of fine strokes. As the powerplay concluded, India stood at 39/1 after six overs, with Rohit (27*) and Pant (7*) at the crease, steadfast in their pursuit of the target.
With the innings progressing, India’s run-chase gained momentum. Pant’s boundary in the 7.5th over brought up the 50-run mark for the team. Rohit Sharma then showcased his batting prowess, dispatching Joshua Little for two consecutive sixes in the following over.
Rohit’s sublime form saw him reach his 10th T20 World Cup half-century in just 36 balls, embellished with four boundaries and three sixes. At the halfway mark, India stood strong at 76/1 after 10 overs, with Rohit (52*) and Pant (18*) leading the charge. India ended their run-chase successfully at a score of 97/2, with the winning six coming from Pant.
Earlier in the first innings, the Indian bowlers showcased their dominance throughout the match, restricting the Ireland team to just 96 runs at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Wednesday, in the T20 World Cup 2024 encounter.
Hardik Pandya was the highest wicket-taker with three wickets, while Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah each clinched two wickets. Axar Patel and Mohammed Siraj also contributed, taking one wicket each.
The pitch offered plenty of assistance to the fast bowlers, which India exploited effectively. Arshdeep Singh struck twice in his second over to dismiss Ireland’s openers, setting the tone for the rest of the Indian pacers to dominate and reduce Ireland to 50/8.
Delany and Little provided some resistance, adding 27 runs for the ninth wicket, which turned out to be the highest partnership of the innings. Jasprit Bumrah broke this partnership, and a mix-up involving the last pair ended Ireland’s innings at 96.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl first against Ireland. After winning the toss Sharma said, “We’re going to bowl. Preparations have been alright. Have been managing ourselves in these new conditions. Has been challenging but we are all professionals. We played on a similar pitch and do know what to expect a little bit. I know it’s going to be slightly different from what we’re used to. But that’s what the sport is. Not sure about the conditions too much, so thought having a target in front of us would be good. Guys missing out are Kuldeep, Sanju, Jaiswal and one more,”
Ireland skipper Paul Stirling at the toss said, “Coming with pretty good prep, we were in Amsterdam recently. We’ve got plenty of matchwinners in our side, want them to show up on the day. We’re looking to assess conditions early.”
India will be looking forward to ending their ICC trophy drought, having last won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013. Since then, India has reached the 50-over World Cup final in 2023, semifinal in 2015 and 2019, the title clash of the ICC World Test Championship in 2021 and 2023, T20 WC final in 2014, semifinals in 2016 and 2022 but failed to secure a big ICC trophy.
India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj
Ireland (Playing XI): Paul Stirling(c), Andrew Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker(w), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Joshua Little, Benjamin White
