India vs Ireland Match Prediction: Who will win today's 1st T20I match?
Amid rumors of emergency meetings between the BCCI big shots and the team management, Team India's second-string squad (and second-string support staff) will face off against Ireland in a three-match T20I series. The first contest will be played in Dublin on Friday.
Why are there rumors of emergency meetings floating around? Well, India recently lost their first bilateral series against West Indies in 17 years, and their performances in general have been far from convincing in white-ball cricket. With the Asia Cup and the World Cup firmly on the horizon, that doesn't bode well for the side.
Nevertheless, India won't have much pressure on them from that aspect at least, with most of the squad that has been named to take on Ireland not in the World Cup picture right now. It's a band of returning superstars and fresh faces who will take different learnings from the series.
Ireland, meanwhile, have gone through some changes of late. Paul Stirling is at the helm, and they will take heart from the fact that they've won five of their last six T20Is, albeit against lesser oppositions.
Can the Irish come up with fighting displays and deepen the woes of the Men in Blue? Or will India cruise through the series and shift their focus to more important pursuits up ahead?
India vs Ireland Match Prediction: Bumrah-led Men in Blue look to get through the T20I series unscathed
India's batting lineup is bound to feature a couple of fresh faces. Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma are in line to make their T20I debuts in the opening game, while Shivam Dube is a contender to make his international comeback after a few years in the wilderness.
The bowling lineup could wear a revamped look, too. Jasprit Bumrah has dispelled any doubts regarding his fitness and has claimed that he hasn't had to hold back in the nets, while Prasidh Krishna bowled two fiery overs in the Maharaja Trophy before getting on a plane to Ireland.
Ireland, meanwhile, have enough talent to give India a few things to think about. Josh Little and Mark Adair lead a pace attack brimming with quality and experience, and there's no dearth of ability in the batting unit either.
Lorcan Tucker, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, and George Dockrell are all match-winners on their day and have played several meaningful knocks in the recent past. Meanwhile, Captain Stirling and former skipper Andy Balbirnie are obviously no slouches.
However, despite Ireland's obvious chances of causing an upset, it's tough to pick against India. Bumrah and Co. are easily the better unit on paper and have several players in their side who will be itching to make an impression.
While anything can happen in a game of cricket, especially at a time when the visitors have struggled to come up with complete performances, India should be able to come up trumps in the opening T20I.
Prediction: India to win the first T20I vs Ireland.