Ireland vs India, IRE vs IND, Today Match Prediction 26 June 2022

ire vs ind Match Prediction & Analysis

Ireland and India are set to kickstart an exciting summer for the Irish team. The first game of the two-match T20I series is scheduled to take place at Castle Avenue, Dublin on 16th June from 9:00 pm. This will be India’s second tour of Ireland. In 2018, India won the two-match T20I series against the hosts at the same venue. The series will be part of the Irish long summer as they are set to host New Zeland, South Africa, and New Zealand after India.

Ireland played 7 T20Is this year. Out of the 7, 5 were part of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier A. They lost the finals of the qualifier against UAE by 7 wickets but eventually qualified for the ICC World T20 2022 which is scheduled to go on the floor in Australia. In the finals, Harry Tector scored a 37 ball 50 that helped set a target of 160 for UAE. Pacer Josh Little’s 2 for 17 with a maiden went in vain as UAE chased the target in 19 overs. India hosted South Africa for a 5-match T20I series. After losing the first two games under the captaincy of Rishabh Pant, they bounced back to win the next two games. The 5th and final game washed out due to the rain. With a 2-2 draw, India kept the record of being unbeaten in the last 9 T20I series played at home. 

Both teams have faced each other thrice in the past. In the 2009 ICC World T20, India beat Ireland by 8 wickets while chasing 113 runs. 9 years later they toured Ireland for a 2-match series. Batting first, India scored 200 plus runs in both games and beat Ireland easily to take the series 2-0. Yuzi Chahal was the player of the series with 6 wickets. 

TEAMS PREVIEW

Ireland Preview

Ireland have included uncapped Stephen Doheny and Conor Olphert in the 14-men squad after a successful domestic season. Doheny finished with 158 runs at an average of 52.67 in the Inter-Provincial T20 Trophy. He can be an excellent addition to the Ireland top-order with Paul Sterling and underfire skipper Andrew Balbirnie. Stirling was Ireland’s top run-scorer in the Qualifiers with 116 runs at a strike rate of 111.53. Balbirnie managed to score 100 runs in 5 matches at a strike rate of 128.20.  But he has a strike rate of 144.52 at this ground. Batting all-rounder Gareth Delany will be playing the role of an anchor at the top. He has an experience of 37 T20I games with 694 runs at a strike rate of 136.07.

Harry Tector, wicketkeeper Lorcan Tucker, and Andy McBrine will be the ideal choice to play in the middle. In form batter, Tector has scored 109 runs in the last 3 games at a strike rate of 138. On the other hand, Tucker is struggling at number 6. His keeping stats are also not up to the mark. Yet Ireland will go with him ahead as the options are limited. McBrine scored a hundred in a List A game this month. The experienced all-rounder has 21 wickets in 26 T20I so far. His economy is also below 7. India will find it a little difficult to face the complete package offered by McBrine.

With Simi Singh sidelined, Josh Little will lead the bowling attack with Mark Adair and Craig Young. Little took 7 wickets in the qualifier including 2 for 17 in the finals. The 22-year-old has played 34 T20s for Ireland and has a decent record of 31 wickets at an economy of 7.49. All eyes will be on Mark Adair as this will be his first big series. Adair has 59 wickets in 39 T20Is.

Key Players: Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Mark Adair.

Ireland Predicted Playing XI:

Andrew Balbirnie (C), Mark Adair, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young.

Ireland Actual Playing XI:

Mark Adair, Andy McBrine, Craig Young, Conor Olphert, George Dockrell, Joshua Little, Paul Stirling, Lorcan Tucker, Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Andy Balbirnie

India Preview

India has handed over the captaincy to the IPL 2022 winner Hardik Pandya in absence of the key team players. Pandya will be leading India for the first time after he turned the tables around this year with an all-round performance leading Gujrat Titans in IPL. The player in the IPL final scored 487 runs in IPL which earned him a call in the Indian squad. Pandya scored 117 runs against South Africa at home at a strike rate of 153.94. He has another IPL star - Dinesh Karthik with him. Karthik made a comeback after a successful IPL stint as a finisher for RCB. He scored 92 runs at an average of 46 against SA, including a match-winning knock of 58 in the fourth game. Both Pandya and Karthik were part of the 2018 Ireland tour but didn’t get much chance to play. 

Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad will open the innings. Kishan amassed 206 runs in 5 games at a strike rate of 150.36 against SA. On the other hand, Gaikwad played just one knock of 57 throughout the series. This will be his chance to put his name forward for the probable World T20 squad. Suryakumar Yadav is returning to the squad after an injury that forced him to leave the IPL in middle. Surya has 351 runs in just 12 T20I games on his record at a strike rate of 165.56. With Hardik and DK in the middle order, there will be a competition between Sanju Samson, Deepak Hooda, Venkatesh Iyer, and Rahul Tripathi to get into the middle order. Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer can be used as all-rounders too. Hooda scored 451 runs in this IPL and has already made his debut for India with 21 runs at a strike rate of 131.25.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be acting as the deputy of Hardik Pandya. Kumar took 6 wickets in the series against SA. Besides that, he was the most economical bowler for India. Harshal Patel and Avesh Khan will be in the playing 11. Patel was the leading wicket-taker of the SA series. While Avesh Khan came up with 4 for 18 in the last T20I India played. India will still look to test Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh before the regular team returns. Yuzu Chahal and Axar Patel will be the lead spinners. Chahal took 6 wickets in the last 2 games after getting hammered in the first two games by SA. 

Key Players: Ishan Kishan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suryakumar Yadav

India Predicted Playing XI:

Hardik Pandya (C), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Dinesh Karthik, Suryakumar Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan.

India Actual Playing XI:

Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Avesh Khan, Umran Malik, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Hooda, YS Chahal, Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

Unfortunately, it will be a rainy and windy atmosphere throughout the game day. In fact, the rain is predicted all week. The temperature will range between 11 and 16°C. The wind will be flowing from the southwest at 28-33 kmh. The pitch is a batting paradise because of its shorter boundaries. We have seen many big scores and successful chases at the Village.

Venue Details

The 1st T20I between Ireland and India will be played at Castle Avenue, Dublin. It is a home venue for Ireland and has hosted 1 test, 16 ODIs & 14 T20Is so far. Scotland has posted the highest T20I score of 252 for 3 against the Netherlands at this venue.
 

Toss: To Bowl

In 14 T20Is, teams have successfully chased the target on 8 occasions. Even in the last five games team batting second have won 3 times. The team winning the toss should field first.