Recent Match Report – Ireland vs India 1st T20I 2022

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12-over game India 111 for 3 (Hooda 47*, Kishan 26, Young 2-18) beat Ireland 108 for 4 (Tector 64, Chahal 1-11, Bhuvneshwar 1-16) by seven wickets

Harry Tector didn’t break a career-best 64 from 33 balls, but India chased 109 in a 12-over shootout in the first T20I of the season in Malahide. After occasional rain and a wet pitch that delayed the start of play by just over two hours, Tector’s one-man show led a 22-for-3 rally in Ireland to a competitive total.

However, that seemed a lot less competitive when Ishan Kishan stormed out of the blocks. Although Sear Craig Young cut Kishan’s innings short at 26 out of 11 and then pinned Suryakumar Yadav for a duck next ball, Deepak Hooda, who was promoted to start for the first time in his 160-game T20 career, led India home with 16 balls to Reserve.

Bhuvneshwar enjoy power play

A greenish Malahide lane that offered both swing and seam was right up the alley of Bhuvneshwar Kumar. After taking one away from Andy Balbirnie, Bhuvneshwar ripped an inswinger that hit the top of the Irish captain’s stump and sent him to a duck.

Bhuvneshwar then greeted Gareth Delany No. 3 with a sharper inswinger that pinged the pad, but it did too much to threaten the stumps. Bhuvneshwar’s two overs in a shortened four-over power play cost only two runs.

After winning his first toss as India captain, Hardik Pandya handed himself the new ball, to debutant Umran Malik, and struck with his second legal throw when he had Paul Stirling cut a catch halfway through for 4 of 5 balls. Delay threw his bat around for 8 out of 9 before Avesh Khan limped him behind wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik.

Tector illuminates Malahide
Despite wickets falling around him, Tector once again showed why he is one of the most exciting young batters in Irish cricket. He had started 2022 with three consecutive half-centuries in the Caribbean in ODI cricket and now he showed he could also compete in T20Is against India’s IPL superstars.

Tector settled into Axar Patel’s finger-spin on his left arm and pulled him back to back through the covers. In all, twenty-nine of his 64 runs came through and over that region.

Malik marked his arrival with a lightning bolt from 148 kph, but his only remaining on the night was 18 runs. He made a mistake with both his lines and lengths and Tector got a chance to both drive and hook the bowler for limits.

Tector pushed on to pick up his half-century of 29 balls and in the last over of the innings, he daringly kicked Avesh four times. However, there wasn’t enough support from the rest of Ireland’s batters, who could only get 34 of 39 balls together at a stroke rate of 87.17.

Hooda opens, Hardik at No.4
India shook things up by pushing Hooda to the top along with Kishan instead of Ruturaj Gaikwad. While Kishan hit three fours and two sixes in 11 balls, Hooda mourned for 5 out of 7 before picking up the pace to finish with an unbeaten 47 out of 29.

He advanced on offspinner Andy McBrine and launched him for six and in the next over, debutant Conor Olphert kicked the same region for another six. He forged a 64-run third-wicket stand with Hardik, who basked his way into a No. 4 12-ball 24.

After taking a slice of Kishan in the early exchanges, left arm sailor Josh Little bounced back to trap Hardik lbw. Hooda and Karthik, however, closed the game coolly to put India at 1-0.

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