Belfast, June 26 (IANS) Captain Lorcan Tucker struck a composed half-century while Gareth Delany narrowly missed out on a fifty as Ireland recovered impressively from an early collapse to post a challenging 182/9 against India in the opening T20I at the Civil Service Cricket Club on Friday.

Coming to bat first after India won the toss, Ireland made an aggressive start. Tim Tector wasted little time in getting going, smashing Arshdeep Singh for a six over square leg as Ireland collected 10 runs from the opening over.

Ross Adair then continued the attacking approach in the second over, driving Harshit Rana for two boundaries. However, Rana provided India with the breakthrough on the final delivery of the over when Adair edged behind to wicketkeeper Sanju Samson after a brisk 12 off just seven balls.

India struck again immediately as Arshdeep dismissed the in-form Harry Tector in the following over. The right-hander edged a delivery through to Samson without troubling the scorers significantly, leaving Ireland under early pressure.

Tim Tector attempted to keep the scoreboard moving with a couple of attractive strokes, but Rana deceived him with a well-disguised slower delivery. The opener departed for 17 from 12 balls, reducing Ireland to 32/3.

With three wickets down inside the Power-play, Ireland adopted a more cautious approach and reached 36/3 after six overs.

Benjamin Calitz briefly shifted the momentum by taking on Prasidh Krishna in the seventh over, launching two towering sixes to boost the scoring rate. His stay, however, was short-lived as Shivam Dube outfoxed him with a slower ball in the following over. Calitz made 15 from 11 deliveries.

Ireland found much-needed stability through skipper Lorcan Tucker and Gareth Delany, who rebuilt the innings with a well-balanced partnership. Tucker anchored the innings while Delany played the more aggressive role, ensuring the scoreboard continued to tick over through regular boundaries and smart strike rotation.

The pair steadily regained control before Tucker accelerated in style, collecting 16 runs from Axar Patel’s 13th over to take Ireland past the 100-run mark.

The captain brought up his half-century in just 35 balls and looked set for a much bigger score before Harshit Rana returned to dismiss him with another slower delivery. Tucker’s excellent knock of 50 from 36 balls featured five fours and two sixes.

Despite losing their captain, Ireland did not lose momentum. George Dockrell walked in with positive intent and immediately attacked Washington Sundar, hammering two sixes and two boundaries in a 19-run over.

Dockrell and Delany then produced the innings’ biggest flourish against Prasidh Krishna, taking 27 runs from the 17th over through a combination of powerful hitting and clean timing, including three sixes and two fours. Axar Patel eventually broke the partnership by dismissing Dockrell for a quickfire 19 off 10 balls, an innings that included two fours and a six.

Delany continued to attack but fell heartbreakingly short of a deserved half-century. Attempting another big shot off Arshdeep Singh in the penultimate over, he was caught at deep backward square leg for 49 from 31 deliveries, having struck three fours and three sixes.

Ireland lost two more wickets in the final over, but their late assault ensured they finished on an imposing 182/9 from 20 overs.

Harshit Rana was India’s standout bowler with impressive figures of 3/24 from his four overs. Arshdeep Singh claimed 2/36, while Axar Patel also picked up two wickets. Despite India’s early success with the ball, Ireland’s middle-order resilience and explosive finish gave the hosts a strong total to defend.

Brief scores:

Ireland 182/9 in 20 overs (Locran Tucker 50, Gerath Delany 49, George Dockrell 19; Harshit Rana 3-24, Arshdeep Singh 2-28, Axar Patel 2-33) against India

–IANS

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