With Indian skipper Jasprit Bumrah’s sensational comeback spell and Indian bowlers’ combined efforts, India restricted Ireland to 139/7 in the opening match of the three-match T20I series against Ireland in Durbin on Friday. Jasprit Bumrah plucked Ireland’s batting unit by dismissing two batters in his first over. Prasidh Krishna also dismissed two batters in his debut match while Ravi Bishnoi also got two breakthroughs. Arshdeep Singh cleared up one batter. Put to bat first, Ireland got blows at the beginning of the innings as the Indian skipper Bumrah made an excellent comeback, taking two wickets in the first over. He dismissed Andy Balbirnie with an outside off-ball taking an inside edge onto the stumps. Quickly, in the fifth ball of the same over, he picked up the wicket of Lorcan Tucker on a duck. Prasidh Krishna did not take much time to settle down in his maiden T20I match as he took his maiden wicket in his first spell in the 5th over. He dismissed Harry Tector at 9 runs. Spinner Ravi Bishnoi got the major breakthrough of Ireland’s star batter Paul Stirling at 11 runs in the 6th over. Ireland were 30/4 after the powerplay. India were not giving any chance to Ireland for a comeback as they were taking wickets in quick intervals. Prasidh picked up his second wicket dismissing George Dockrell with back-of-a-length delivery which was caught by Ruturaj Gaikwad at cover. Ireland’s batting team crumbled in front of India’s outstanding bowling. This time Mark Adair went back to the pavilion in Bishnoi’s bowling after Bumrah took a review and the third umpire called it out. Curtis Campher and Barry McCarthy tried to steer the innings of Ireland, they guided their team to 100 run mark in 16.1 overs.
With a brilliant yorker, Arshdeep Singh broke the partnership of Curtis and Barry. He dismissed Curtis in the 18th over. In the last over, Ireland’s Barry brought his 50 by hitting a six, they collected 22 runs in the overs to provide a decent total of 139/ 7 against India. With a target of 140 runs, India’s chase was off to a steady start as Yashasvi Jaiswal hit two boundaries off Mark Adair’s first over. Ireland lost a review when a delivery from Josh Little brushed Yashasvi Jaiswal’s thigh pad, but the review showed no conclusive evidence of an edge. Despite the initial hiccup, India’s opening partnership progressed, with Ruturaj Gaikwad showcasing his skills by hitting a well-timed boundary and a six off Barry McCarthy’s bowling. Unfortunately, the promising chase was halted by rain, with India being 47/2 in 6.5 overs, just two runs ahead of the DLS par score. Regrettably, the persistent rain refused to relent, leading to the eventual abandonment of the match. On the basis of the DLS method, India clinched a narrow victory by two runs, taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. Earlier, the performances of Bumrah and Bishnoi with two wickets each, along with McCarthy’s resilient knock for Ireland, had highlighted the intensity of the encounter.
