Deepak Hooda Powers India To 7-Wicket Win Against Ireland In 1st T20I
After Ishan Kishan's explosive opening and Deepak Hooda's powering knock, India managed to chase down the target of 109 runs with 16 deliveries in hand and defeated Ireland by 7 wickets in the first T20I.
Ishan Kishan started the chase off in style as he blazed just 26 runs off 11 deliveries with 4 fours and 2 sixes. Craig Young dismissed the explosive opener in the 3rd over and went on to dismiss Suryakumar Yadav for a golden duck in the very next ball.
However, Deepak Hooda, who came out to open the innings, held the crease along with skipper Hardik Pandya and etched a partnership of 64 runs in just 32 deliveries for the 3rd wicket. Hardik was dismissed on the last delivery of the 8th over by Joshua Little, but India were at 94/3 at the time and required 15 runs to win off the last four overs.
Deepak Hooda remained unbeaten on 47 from 29 deliveries including 6 fours & 2 sixes and crossed the winning line for his team along with Dinesh Karthik (5*).
For Ireland, Craig Young picked up 2 wickets while Joshua Little managed 1 scalp.
In the first innings, Harry Tector played a good responsible knock the bat, taking Ireland to 108/4 in 12 overs against India in the first T20I after the start was delayed due to rain.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up the important wicket of captain Andrew Balbirnie for a duck in the first over. Indian captain Hardik Pandya dismissed explosive batter Paul Stirling in the next over and the Irish looked in a spot of bother.
Gareth Delany was dismissed by Avesh Khan in the 4th over as Ireland lost 3 wickets for just 22 runs. However, Harry Tector etched a partnership of 50 runs with Lorcan Tucker (18) for the 4th wicket.
Tucker was dismissed by Yuzvendra Chahal in the 9th over. However, Tector continued with his blazing batting and smashed Indian bowlers all around the park. Harry Tector finished unbeaten for 64 runs in 33 deliveries with 6 fours & 3 sixes.
For India, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Avesh Khan & Yuzvendra Chahal picked up 1 wicket each.
Also Read: Scorecard
Earlier, Indian captain Hardik Pandya won the toss & opted to bowl first against Ireland in the 1st T20I. This match is being played at The Village, Dublin.