After a brilliant fightback in the 5-match T20 series vs South Africa, Team India's limited-overs squad will shift its focus towards Ireland as the Men in Blue take on the hosts in the 1st T20 in Dublin on Sunday.
As Rishabh Pant has joined the Test squad in England, Hardik Pandya has been assigned the captaincy duties for the first time in his career. His experience of recently leading the Gujarat Titans to win the IPL in its inaugural season will come in handy.
A major boost for Team India though will be a fit-again Suryakumar Yadav, who is expected to walk into the middle order in place of Shreyas Iyer, who too is gearing up for the Test match vs England.
Apart from him, Deepak Hooda is also expected to get the go-ahead. The all-rounder had a memorable IPL for the Lucknow Super Giants where he scored 451 runs in 15 matches and will be looking to prove his mettle.
The bowling department will once again be spearheaded by Bhuvneshwar Kumar who has found his rhythm back. With Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami set to return to the T20 side in the future, Bhuvi would be eager to further strengthen his position.
On the other hand, Ireland would be eyeing to spring in a surprise but it's easier said than done. The Irish have never beaten India in T20I and have lost all 3 games so far against the subcontinental giants.
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1st T20: India vs Ireland Playing XI
India Playing XI (probable): Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (C), Dinesh Karthik (WC), Deepak Hooda, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Yuzvendra Chahal.
IND vs IRE 1st T20 live toss and match timings
India vs Ireland live match will begin at 9:00 pm IST while the toss will take place 30 minutes before the scheduled start of play, i.e. 8:30 PM IST.
India vs Ireland Live Telecast details:
The Match will be aired live on Sony channels - Sony SIX and Sony SIX HD
India vs Ireland live broadcast free
Doordarshan will live telecast the IND vs IRE series for free on its terrestrial network.
IND vs IRE 1st T20I live streaming
The online streaming of the India vs Ireland 1st T20 match will be available on Sony Liv