Belfast, June 25 (IANS) Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be in the spotlight as India enters the Shreyas Iyer leadership era when they take on an injury-hit Ireland in the first T20I to be played at the Civil Service Cricket Ground in Stormont on Friday.

While current T20 World Cup holders India enter the contest as overwhelming favourites to win the series on their return to Ireland after three years, the primary narrative revolves around teenaged batting sensation Sooryavanshi, who has left everyone excited with his audacious strokeplay.

Following an explosive IPL 2026 season for Rajasthan Royals and hitting 94 for India A I the 50-over tri-series final in Dambulla, Sri Lanka, Sooryavanshi is on the verge of a historic international debut. But at the same time, it creates a major selection dilemma for the team management.

Fitting Sooryavanshi into the playing eleven might require breaking up the highly successful opening pair of Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson, who was named Player of the Tournament in India’s recent T20 World Cup triumph. Adding to it, Ishan Kishan also sparkled at number three, which means it’s easier said than done to hand a debut to young Sooryavanshi.

The series also marks a crucial leadership initiation for Iyer, who returns to the India T20I setup for the first time since December 2023. Taking over the reins from Suryakumar Yadav, Iyer will look to leverage his highly successful IPL captaincy experience and strong rapport with head coach Gautam Gambhir to anchor a hyper-aggressive middle order that includes himself, Kishan, vice-captain Tilak Varma.

In the bowling department, the Indian team management will evaluate whether to draft a fit-again Harshit Rana straight back into the lineup alongside fast bowling spearhead Arshdeep Singh, or reward recent performers like Prince Yadav and Prasidh Krishna.

In stark contrast, 12th-ranked Ireland enters the series on the back of a severe injury crisis. The hosts are missing five frontline players, including veteran batter Paul Stirling, Mark Adair, and Josh Little. The situation hands a challenging initiation to its newly appointed permanent T20I captain Lorcan Tucker, who commands a highly inexperienced bowling unit, with Matthew Hollard and Jai Moondra handed maiden call-ups.

India boasts a flawless 8-0 head-to-head record against Ireland in T20Is, with their last meeting occurring during the 2024 T20 World Cup. As India returns to playing an international game in Stormont for the first time since 2007, they will look to continue their stellar run in T20Is this year, which stands at 12 wins out of 14 matches.

When: Friday, June 26, 6:00PM

Where: Civil Service Cricket Ground in Stormont

Where to watch: Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 5 SD & HD channels on TV. SonyLiv will live-stream the match on its website and app.

Squads

India: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Sharma, Suryansh Shedge, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Prince Yadav, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

Ireland: Lorcan Tucker (c), Ross Adair, Ben Calitz, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Matthew Humphreys, Gavin Hoey, Matthew Hollard, Liam McCarthy, Jai Moondra, Harry Tector, Tim Tector and Reuben Wilson

–IANS

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