If it was an isolated incident that led to Saha doing what he did, then there are reasons for Bengal cricket officials to be disappointed about their handling of the situation

Wriddhiman Saha

Ranji Trophy, 2022

Bengal

Wriddhiman Saha’s Bengal departure more than just a sad divorce

In WBBL|07, the Indian captain was adjudged the Player of the Tournament 

Harmanpreet Kaur

Melbourne Renegades Women

Melbourne Renegades re-sign Harmanpreet for WBBL|08

The right-hander said England "won't be shutting up shop" no matter what

Jonny Bairstow

India tour of England, 2021/22

England

We're fiercely competitive on field, it's a bit of craic: Bairstow on Kohli incident

Jonny Bairstow slammed 106 off 140 but England still ended up conceding a lead of 132 in the first innings

Mohammed Siraj

India

We were aware of England batters' weak points: Siraj

Harshal Patel rescued India's batting collapse with a 36-ball 54 and claimed 2-23

Dinesh Karthik

Harshal Patel

India tour of England, 2022

Northamptonshire

Second Tour T20: Allround Harshal helps India beat Northamptonshire by 10 runs

Amidst the chaos surrounding the performance of the England team, Sciver has single-handedly guided the team out of the muddle time and time again

Natalie Sciver

Marizanne Kapp

Alyssa Healy

Heather Knight

Alice Davidson-Richards

South Africa Women tour of England, 2022

England Women

South Africa Women

Nat Sciver: The girl who is keeping the England flag flying sky-high

Following a win in his first-ever match in charge as captain, Hardik Pandya confirmed that Ruturaj Gaikwad had a calf niggle and did not want to risk him in the first T20 International (T20I) against Ireland in Dublin.India eased to a seven-wicket victory in a match reduced to 12 overs per side due to the rain.With Gaikwad not opening, Deepak Hooda opened for the first time in T20 cricket, alongside Ishan Kishan, and finished the game off with an unbeaten 29-ball 47, with six fours and a couple of sixes punctuating his innings.&quot;Ruturaj had a calf niggle, and we had a chance to send him out by taking some risk. But I was not okay. For me a player&#39;s health is more important, the match will take care of itself,&quot; Pandya said after India went 1-o up in the two-match T20I series.&quot;So we didn&#39;t make much of a change, whatever everyone&#39;s number was we went one place up. And it was not much of a headache. It was important to make sure Rutu was not put under much risk and take much of a chance with him.&quot;And very happy for Hooda as well because at the last minute to know you&#39;re going to open and then finish off the game, it shows character. Very happy for him.&quot;Pandya was also full of praise for Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yuzvendra Chahal, who was awarded the player of the match for his spell of 1 for 11.&nbsp;&quot;Obviously Bhuvi everyone knows what his caliber is as a bowler. He always comes and does the same thing but sometimes his work goes under the carpet, he&#39;s not talked about a lot. But if you look at history, and the way he has performed then he commands a lot of respect and he deserves to get it too. For me, Bhuvi is top class,&quot; the India skipper said.&quot;And same thing with Yuzi as well, he&#39;s a matchwinner. Whenever he gets the ball, I tell him to bowl what he wants to and he&#39;ll help you win the match.&quot;While the idea is to give many players a chance to prove their worth ahead of the T20 World Cup, Pandya remains confident that India would zero in on the final squad closer to the mega event.&quot;It&#39;s early, but yes our ultimate goal will be to get better for the World Cup. And the whole management and all the boys who are not here, our goal is to make sure how can we get better for World Cup,&quot; Pandya, who picked up the wicket of Paul Stirling and chipped with 24 off 12, said.&quot;And this is one good step we&#39;ve taken where intentionally our attitude and the kind of character we&#39;re showing, it&#39;s going to help us in the World Cup when the crunch game comes.&quot;You get experience while playing, that has been a constant effort from the management. And the guys they&#39;re looking forward to, make sure they&#39;re there in the World Cup squad or in the scheme of things.&nbsp;&quot;They want to give them the best opportunity to get a couple of games under their belt, rather than just coming towards the World Cup and getting their first game. So we want people to kind of settle in. And I&#39;m sure by the time the World Cup comes, we&#39;re going to get to a tighter squad.&quot;Hardik will lead India again in the second and final T20I against Ireland in Dublin on Tuesday (June 28). Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

As a result, it was Deepak Hooda who was sent out to open for the first time in T20s to partner Ishan Kishan

Hardik Pandya

Ruturaj Gaikwad

India tour of Ireland, 2022

Ireland

Ruturaj had a calf niggle, didn't want to risk him: Hardik Pandya

In the end, it turned out to be a regulation win for team India. They cruised towards the target of 109, getting home with 16 balls to spare, and lived up to the pre-game tag of being overwhelming favorites.&nbsp;On Sunday, Dublin did not provide ideal T20 conditions but the crowds still ended up getting their money&rsquo;s worth. In a rain-curtailed encounter that lasted all of 21 overs, the two sides somehow managed to pack-in three and a half hours of entertainment courtesy some sweet hitting from the batters, who made fullest use of the ground dimensions at The Village.&nbsp;A night to remember for Harry Tector<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656279660373-articleimg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib fr-fil"> Should it not have been for Harry Tector, Sunday&rsquo;s encounter at The Village would have easily been one of the most one-sided, unremarkable, unmemorable international games of the year. At 22/3 in cloudy conditions, India were all over Ireland and at this point, the encounter was lifeless. Even the prospect of rain making a reappearance and finishing the match off, for good, seemed appealing.&nbsp;But perhaps the weather gods knew a thing or two. Perhaps they purposely stayed away to let everyone enjoy the batting exhibition that was Tector&rsquo;s 64*.&nbsp;It took Tector 9 balls to find the boundary rope for the first time. But once he did, there was no looking back. The next 24 balls of his innings featured 5 more fours and 3 sixes, and so good were some of the strokes that it had the most ardent of Indian fans cheering the youngster on.Heck, it even had the Indian skipper drooling.&ldquo;Some of the shots Harry played had me in awe,&rdquo; said Pandya post the game.Usually in a T20 dash, you&rsquo;ll have batters scoring close to 60-65% of their runs through the on-side, the mid-wicket and cow-corner regions proving to be the most productive. The beauty of Tector&rsquo;s knock on Sunday was that a remarkable 42 of the 64 runs he scored came on the off-side, with cover proving to be his favorite region.&nbsp;<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656279709348-articleimg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib fr-fil">He began his innings by dispatching Axar Patel for a pair of boundaries through the off-side, and that ended up foreshadowing what followed: of the eight boundaries he hit on the night, five &mdash; including two sixes &mdash; came in the zone between cover and extra cover.&nbsp;It was a knock that deserved to end up on the winning side but that&rsquo;s alright. Now the world knows who Harry Tector is.&nbsp;Bhuvneshwar, Chahal stand-out in ordinary bowling day for the visitors&nbsp;After winning the toss and bowling first, team India sure would not have expected conceding 108 inside 12 overs, especially after reducing the hosts to 22/3 inside the powerplay (4 overs), removing all the major threats in Stirling, Balbirnie and Delany. But it happened anyway.&nbsp;That was because they had as many as four bowlers misfire on the night. Hardik Pandya, Avesh Khan, Axar Patel and Umran Malik all went at over 11 an over, and the quartet&rsquo;s loose showing ensured that Ireland got to a total that was certainly par.&nbsp;There was uncontrollable buzz the moment news broke out that Umran Malik was making his international debut but on the day, the tearaway bowled a pretty nervy six balls. He attempted the glory ball &mdash; straight, pacy yorker &mdash; one too many times and paid the price after failing to get the radar right. Young Harry Tector manhandled him by smashing a four and a six as his only over in the game went for 18.Axar Patel, too, was taken apart by Tector while skipper Pandya, despite getting the big wicket of Paul Stirling, bowled an ordinary 2 overs as he was whacked for 26. Pandya might have enjoyed an outstanding IPL with the ball, but his last 7 overs in Indian colours have now traveled for 87 runs.&nbsp;Avesh Khan began well by removing Delany in his first over but he, too, lost the plot at the very end, his attempted yorkers all turning into juicy full-tosses for Tector to dispatch.&nbsp;That Ireland did not end up posting an above-par total was fully down to India&rsquo;s veterans, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yuzvendra Chahal, stepping up.&nbsp;Taking the new-ball in tailor-made conditions, Bhuvneshwar picked up from where he left against South Africa. It took him only five balls to strike &mdash; an inswinger castling Balbirnie &mdash; and he exited the powerplay with figures of 2-1-2-1, once again setting up the game for the rest of the bowlers.To Bhuvneshwar&rsquo;s dismay his terrific new-ball burst ended up getting nullified, but Chahal&rsquo;s masterful spell in the middle ensured that it, at least, did not come in a losing cause.&nbsp;The leggie conceded just 11 off his 3 overs, while accounting for the wicket of Lorcan Tucker, and got through his spell without conceding a single boundary. This despite him bowling the penultimate over of the innings against a set Tector. Quite a remarkable achievement on an extremely small Malahide ground.&nbsp;The two veterans stepped up but come the second T20I, India would be hoping for the bowling unit to fire collectively.&nbsp;Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

The 22-year-old produced a batting exhibition that even left the Indian skipper ‘in awe’

Harry Tector

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Yuzvendra Chahal

Umran Malik

India win, but Harry Tector steals the show

All-round India thump Ireland despite Tector's brilliant fifty

Hardik Pandya, who will be captaining team India in the two-match T20I series against Ireland starting Sunday (June 26), attested that the team will approach the games against the Irish with the same intensity as the other big matches, and assured that there will be no complacency from India&rsquo;s end.With several first-team members missing, team India will be fielding somewhat of a second-string XI in the two T20Is in Dublin, but speaking ahead of the first game of the series, Pandya stated that he and his players will bring their &lsquo;A&rsquo; game against Ireland and will aim to keep the intensity extremely high.&nbsp;The primary objective of the team, Pandya said, will be to focus on its own goals.&nbsp;&quot;It&#39;s a challenge mentally, it is easier to say that we are playing against Ireland but playing for India is the biggest pride. If we want to win the World Cup, every match from here is important for us to reach the World Cup final. The first thing I said to all is that it doesn&#39;t matter whom we are playing, we need to focus on our own things,&rdquo; Pandya said on Saturday, on the eve of the first T20I.&quot;We keep the same intensity we generally keep even if we are playing the World Cup or a big series. Again it comes down to mental strength, how better you can get because it&#39;s not easy in two matches getting yourself on but at the same time we are playing for India and we have to be on our A game which we will.&quot;The discussion between me and the coach is simple -- approach the game as you do in any other game for India.&quot;Along the same lines, the stand-in skipper said that the team management might give opportunities to some young players, but not at the cost of a strong playing XI. Arshdeep Singh, Rahul Tripathi and Umran Malik are individuals who would be eyeing to get a national cap in one of the two matches.&quot;We want to give opportunities but at the same time we want to play with our best XI. So there will be a couple of caps given but at the same time it is about making sure that when we go on the field we have the best XI.&quot;KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja, all guaranteed starters come the T20 World Cup, will be taking no part in the two-match series owing to it clashing with the one-off Test against England. But the Men in Blue will still enter the series as overwhelming favorites thanks to the ludicrous strength in depth the country possesses in white-ball cricket.&nbsp;Pandya spoke highly of the mind-boggling bench-strength and asserted that the country is &lsquo;very lucky&rsquo; to have a talent pool so wide that multiple teams can be fielded at once, without compromising too much in quality.&quot;If such a situation arises that we have to send two teams, we are very lucky that we have the bench strength where we can allow the players to go and express and a lot of people will get opportunities.&quot;There are so much talent in India that people don&#39;t get opportunities. Playing for India is always a dream and for them to achieve that dream will be really fantastic,&quot; he said.&quot;The way talent has come up and the character the players have shown and the way we played, it indicates India&#39;s bench strength. There are plenty of options right now in the Indian team.&rdquo;Eyebrows were raised when Pandya was named the skipper of the Gujarat Titans franchise prior to IPL 2022, but the all-rounder put all doubts about his captaincy credentials to bed by astonishingly leading the debutants to the title. Pandya thrived as a batter, bowler and captain, and his impressive showing as the GT skipper served as the primary reason for him being appointed captain for the forthcoming Ireland tour.&nbsp;The 28-year-old described himself as someone who enjoys taking up responsibility, and revealed that responsibility tends to bring the best out of him.&nbsp;&quot;Earlier also, I liked taking up responsibility and now also it is the same but it is a bit more responsibility now. I always believed that I did better when I took responsibility,&quot; he said.&quot;If I can take ownership of my own things and take my own decisions, they tend to be strong. Cricket is such a game, staying strong during situations is very important.&quot;Always responsibility was given to me and I took it and that&#39;s why I became better. While captaining I will see how I can give the same responsibility to every player and give them the ability to fight with situations,&quot; he added.Pandya revealed that he has taken a lot from the captains he has played under and described himself as a skipper that does not rely on instinct and rather prefers to take decisions by assessing the situation.&quot;Obviously I have taken a lot of things from them (Dhoni and Kohli) but at the same time I also want to be myself, obviously my understanding of the game is different but I have taken a lot of good vibes from them.&quot;I am not instinctive but I see more situation than go on my gut. At what point of time, what decision the team requires, I focus on that rather than going on my gut. Gut always goes 50-50,&quot; he said.&quot;I have got an opportunity to lead India. It&#39;s in itself a big thing. I don&#39;t play the sport to show anyone anything, if I am good enough. I was always the same.&quot;Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Pandya stated that he and his players will bring their ‘A’ game against Ireland and will aim to keep the intensity extremely high

There will be no complacency from India’s end against Ireland, assures Hardik Pandya

&quot;Nowadays, any Indian team you play is going to be a good team. It kind of shows the depth of Indian cricket that they can put out two teams,&rdquo; said Andrew Balbirnie during the pre-match press conference on Friday.&nbsp;India&rsquo;s depth across formats in the sport is scary. Under the leadership of Hardik Pandya, India will be aiming to register a series win in Ireland. It is the biggest opportunity yet for some of the players in the squad, including Hardik, who will be captaining the country. Rahul Tripathi might make his debut, Sanju Samson can return and so will Suryakumar Yadav, who will feature for the first time since his injury during the IPL.<a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/this-summer-is-going-to-be-a-defining-period-in-ireland-cricket-heinrich-malan-1656139012548" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read: This summer is going to be a defining period for Ireland Cricket: Heinrich Malan</a>Ireland aren&rsquo;t to be taken lightly. Although they have lost all three against India, they will still walk into this encounter with some confidence. The Green and Whites have won three out of their last four clashes, albeit it being against the UAE.&nbsp;While they will start only with an outside chance, breakthrough star Curtis Campher is confident that the Irish side could use the &lsquo;underdogs&rsquo; tag to pull off a win against India.&nbsp;A look at India&rsquo;s batting futureWhile India showed a glimpse of the immediate future in the series against South Africa, the series against Ireland allows a look into the future. Pairing Tripathi and Suryakumar alongside Samson and Pandya could very well be India&rsquo;s mainstay for a long time.<a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/rahul-tripathi-serves-a-timely-reminder-to-indian-selectors-1650049307861" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read: Rahul Tripathi serves a timely reminder to Indian selectors</a>Tripathi is one of the only two Indians to score 500+ runs, average above 30 with a strike-rate of above 150 since IPL 2021. In the same time-frame, the right-hander has a strike-rate of 137.9 against spin, while maintaining a strike-rate of 155.6 against pace. He is as perfect as India could get to an all-round batter in the middle-order.&nbsp;<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656160195375-articleimg" style="width: 700px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Pairing Tripathi alongside Suryakumar will solve India&rsquo;s issues against spin, and also provide a platform for the likes of Pandya and Samson, both excellent against pace to take charge. It would also be a prime opportunity for Samson, the Indian player, to show his merit having once again aced the IPL challenge.Few years down the line, this could be India&rsquo;s middle-order, given how all of them have married firepower with consistency over the years. And the Ireland series could give us a first-look at this line-up.&nbsp;Paul Stirled, not shakenEven though he hasn&rsquo;t played the IPL, Paul Stirling is easily amongst the top-five T20 openers around the world. For openers with at least 40 T20 appearances since 2021, Stirling has the second-best strike-rate, at 142.2. He scores a boundary every 4.6 deliveries, and has an unmatched aura opening the innings in world cricket.<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656160267717-articleimg" style="width: 700px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">In T20Is as well, Stirling is the third highest-run scorer since 2021, amongst the top Test playing nations, with a strike-rate of 121.7. He&rsquo;s Ireland&rsquo;s leading run scorer in the shortest format, with 2725 runs, averaging 29.62. And his biggest challenge in the last few years of T20Is would be facing up against Avesh Khan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.<a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/curtis-campher-will-be-interesting-to-see-how-i-go-against-bhuvneshwar-kumar-1655982409030" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read: Curtis Campher: Will be interesting to see how I go against Bhuvneshwar Kumar</a>In 48% of the innings, Stirling has been dismissed within the powerplay. And he would face Bhuvneshwar, who has a solid record in the powerplay, with 33 wickets at an average of 23.6. Not just that, this is the Indian pacer&rsquo;s best year in T20Is during the powerplay, with seven wickets, averaging just 11.9.&nbsp;So, the test for Stirling is big but if he could go past that, it could give Ireland a real opportunity.&nbsp;An opportunity finally for Arshdeep and Umran?While Avesh Khan got the nod for all the five T20Is, to partner Bhuvneshwar and Harshal Patel, will we see a change in the bowling setup? The venue in Malahide is a pacer&rsquo;s paradise, with 116 wickets accounting to 66.3% of the dismissals. That then provides VVS Laxman and his management with the perfect opportunity to ease in the likes of Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik.<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656160303742-articleimg" style="width: 700px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Given that Bhuvneshwar is expected to play both the fixtures, India could benefit from either of Arshdeep or Umran. Arshdeep isn&rsquo;t a top-tier wicket-taker like Harshal or Avesh but he provides something very different with the ball. The left-arm pacer, not just with his use of angle or crease, keeps a regular check on the scoring rate.In 37 overs at the death, Arshdeep has an economy rate of 8.5, conceding a boundary only every 7.2nd delivery, with 59 dots in the IPL since 2021. Umran, on the other hand, is unique in his own realm, with the ability of cracking the 150-mark every time he walks out to bowl. While he had a struggle in the first half, his sparkling form since then has brought him to the Indian setup.&nbsp;Team Combination and Predicted XI&quot;We want to give opportunity to people but want to play our best XI as well. There will be situation where there will be a couple of caps given but more than anything, it&#39;s about making sure that we have the best XI,&quot; said Indian skipper Hardik, which signals one of the two could make their debut on Sunday.&nbsp;India XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Rahul Tripathi/ Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (c), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Avesh Khan&nbsp;Ireland, on the other hand, will be bolstered by the return of Curtis Campher, from their last T20I clash way back in February.&nbsp;Ireland XI: Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie (c), Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Andy McBrine, Simi Singh, Curtis Campher, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Joshua LittlePowered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Under Hardik Pandya’s captaincy, India will aim to start a fresh chapter in a winning way

Suryakumar Yadav

Rahul Tripathi

Sanju Samson

Paul Stirling

Arshdeep Singh

New look India seek greener pastures in Dublin

2018 was the last time these two sides met each other. India in the two-match T20I series that time, led by Virat Kohli won the series in convincing fashion, by 143 runs and 76 runs respectively. In fact, Ireland are yet to register a win against India across all formats, with three losses in the shortest one. So, this series provides them with an opportunity of first, starting Saturday in Dublin.&nbsp;It is a first for India too, first for Hardik as a skipper, possibly the first for Rahul Tripathi, Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik. However, India wouldn&rsquo;t take Ireland lightly, knowing what they can do.&nbsp;Ground Details and team combination&lsquo;The Village&rsquo; as it is referred, the ground at Dublin is a dream-come-true for the pacers. In fact, it is a venue which is nicely ventilated, which brings the new-ball bowlers into the picture. At the venue, the pacers have enjoyed a heavy bit of success, with 150 wickets across all T20s, with 3.8 wickets/innings.<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656153979770-articleimg" style="width: 700px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Having said that, however, in T20s since 2020, it has been a mixed bag, with shared spoils for both pacers and spinners, with eight wickets each. In the last two years, the average first-innings total at the venue has been 165, which also happens to be a winning total. Across 22 matches, team batting first have won only nine times, with 13 wins for the teams chasing.&nbsp;Suggested Team<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1656154033731-articleimg" style="width: 700px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">While you could go for the above team, you also have the option of choosing your team from <a href="https://www.cricket.com/fantasy-research-center/210273/ire-vs-ind-1st-t20i-india-tour-of-ireland-2022/create-team" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Cricket.com&rsquo;s Fantasy Research Centre</a>. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Then, based on your preferences, the platform will guide you through creating the ideal fantasy XI.Captaincy SuggestionsSmall Leagues &ndash; Suryakumar Yadav (Captain), Curtis Campher (vice-captain)&nbsp;Grand Leagues &ndash; Paul Stirling (Captain), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (vice-captain)Stats that matter- &nbsp; &nbsp;At the venue, pacers have traditionally picked up more wickets than spinners, with 150 at an average of 3.8/innings against spinners, who have picked 96 at an average of 2.4- &nbsp; &nbsp;Ireland skipper Andrew Balbirnie has the best batting record at the venue, with 262 runs, averaging 26.2 while striking strongly at 137.9.&nbsp;- &nbsp; &nbsp;Since the start of 2022, no one in the Test-playing nation has scored more runs than Ishan Kishan (382 runs) at an average of 38.2.&nbsp;- &nbsp; &nbsp;Craig Young is Ireland&rsquo;s leading wicket-taker in the year (2022), with 12 wickets.Grand League punts- &nbsp; &nbsp;While both Suryakumar Yadav and Curtis Campher, both of whom have proven to be consistent performers for the side remain as the top-options for Small Leagues, Grand league requires you to take plenty of risks.&nbsp;- &nbsp; &nbsp;In five games at the venue, Stirling has a poor record, with an average of 11.8 but taking a punt on the right-hander will help you win big. Since 2021, with a minimum of 40 T20s, Stirling has the second-best record in world cricket, at 142.2. In fact, more than 70% of his runs come via boundaries. He&rsquo;s a risk that is worth taking.&nbsp;- &nbsp; &nbsp;While Craig Young might not be on top of the wicket-takers list at the venue, he is in fact, Ireland&rsquo;s leading wicket-taker this year, with 12 wickets. In the T20 World Cup qualifier earlier this year, Young picked up the most wickets for Ireland, with eight. Taking a punt on Young might be well-worth it.&nbsp;- &nbsp; &nbsp;Picking bowlers in the shortest format is always a risk but with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, you exactly know what to expect. The right-arm seamer is only behind Harshal Patel in terms of being India&rsquo;s leading wicket-taker this year. On pitches that are likely to aid pacers, picking Bhuvneshwar might be the perfect punt.&nbsp;Probable XIsIndia XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Rahul Tripathi/Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson (wk), Hardik Pandya (c), Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Avesh Khan&nbsp;Ireland XI: Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie (c), Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Andy McBrine, Simi Singh, Curtis Campher, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Joshua LittlePowered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Here are a few tips that might help you create your fantasy team for the first T20I between Ireland and India

Josh Little

Curtis Campher

Craig Young

Ishan Kishan

Fantasy Preview: Ireland vs India, first T20I, Dublin

Ireland are set to take on India, New Zealand, South Africa, and Afghanistan for a host of white-ball matches ahead of the T20 World Cup. After the disappointing performance in the last edition in the Middle East, Ireland Cricket have made a host of changes to the stable by appointing former New Zealand batting coach Heinrich Malan as the Head Coach of the side. With Ireland taking on India for a two-match T20 series in Malahide, starting June 26 (Sunday), Malan will kick start his sojourn in Europe.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/curtis-campher-will-be-interesting-to-see-how-i-go-against-bhuvneshwar-kumar-1655982409030" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ALSO READ: Curtis Campher: Will be interesting to see how I go against Bhuvneshwar Kumar</a>Malan sat down with Cricket.com for an exclusive conversation and shed light on his coaching philosophy.The next four months will be crazy for you, right? India, New Zealand, South Africa&mdash;a lot of good and cool cricket is coming up for you. How excited are you right now?Yeah, 100 percent. Don&rsquo;t put away Afghanistan at the back end of the summer, They, you know, have obviously played some good cricket over the last little period too. Look, we&#39;ve got an exciting summer lined up. It&#39;s the most cricket that Ireland have played ever&mdash;from an international point of view&mdash;in their summer. So, really excited about next week this time, when we will have a full house outside of the Malahide for the first two games against India in the T20 format. It&#39;s been a while since the boys have obviously played in front of people&mdash;and in front of full crowds. So yes, it&#39;s bound to be an exciting little period for us. It&#39;s going to be a defining period for us as an international side.Absolutely. And then you are going to face your home team, New Zealand, with three ODIs and three T20s against them. You&rsquo;ve spent a hell lot of time with those boys. So how is it going to be for you as well&mdash;from a personal standpoint?Yeah, look, I guess it&#39;s going to be an exciting summer on the front of facing South Africa as well&mdash;which is, you know, my country of birth&mdash;and then New Zealand, where I&#39;ve obviously spent a bit of time over the last 10 years. So, yeah, it&#39;d be nice to catch up with some familiar faces and players and coaches. Unfortunately, there won&#39;t be any love lost when the first ball gets bowled.Can you please shed some light on your coaching philosophy?It&#39;s a great question. A big part of my coaching philosophy is a collaborative approach and using the IQ in the room. Five or six heads are way better than one head. You&#39;ve mentioned a couple of names there from players that have played some big games for Ireland. We will definitely make sure that those players are the people in front of the room that give the younger guys some guidance on things that have worked for them.&nbsp;I guess that&#39;s probably the overarching philosophy that I try and abide by as a chameleon coach, trying to build those relationships&mdash;first and foremost&mdash;and trying to see what players connect to, the language they connect to, and what they take out of context from a conversation. And then try and be the guy that they need to one, perform consistently and then, two, to support them to do that. The wonderful game we play, there&#39;s no right or wrong way to play this game. For every argument or conversation you have, there could potentially be two or three other ways to get to the same result. I guess it&#39;s about creating that collaborative environment and, in the same breath, try and help our players to be selective in what they take out of conversations and really make it applicable to their strengths.&nbsp;But it&#39;s also part of our coaching group philosophy to ensure that we help our players make some good decisions. We can&#39;t make the decision for them but, hopefully, we can help them and steer them in a direction where they feel they can take some ownership of the decisions they make and the way they want to go out there and play.&nbsp;You have spent a couple of months already here in Ireland now. How are you coping with the tradition and culture of the Irish team?I guess, a big part for us over the first six to eight weeks is making sure that I try and get around as much as I can, watch a fair bit of the interprovincial competition, which is being played for 50 overs, and the T20 side of things. And I guess it was just about trying to get a better understanding of who does what, what is the player pool like, trying to catch up with players that have played for quite a long period of time, but then, in the same breath, also spending some time with interprovincial coaches and getting their thoughts and ideas on how they see things progressing.&nbsp;I guess I&#39;ve got one foot under the table now and have a sort of half an idea about where things are at. But it&#39;s exciting to think that we&#39;ve got a nice little mix of some experienced players that have played fine and for a period of time and trying to add a little bit of a sprinkle to that with some youth. If we can get those guys some opportunity and gain some experience as we go, in the build-up to the World Cup.&nbsp;It&#39;s an exciting period, when you think we&#39;ve got some guys that have played&mdash;and played well&mdash;for Ireland over the last 12 to 18 months. And then we&#39;ve got a couple of guys that we want to try and form as part of our wider think tank towards building up to the World Cup. And through that, we&#39;re going to hopefully give some opportunity for them to bump heads with some of those senior players and, hopefully, their knowledge and experience will rub off on those guys.&nbsp;What are the specific things that you&#39;re targeting to actually keep the Indians at bay? At this point, is it a bit overwhelming for Ireland as well or, are the boys really prepared to take them on?Look, I guess that&#39;s the fun part of international cricket. Things change quickly and you&#39;ve got to be adaptable. We&#39;ve been playing domestically&mdash;here, the interprovincial competition has been going on. So the boys have played a lot of cricket. But, in the same breath, the weather will play its part as well, which is always a part of the wonderful game of cricket. We know that the players that we&#39;re going to compete against over the next six weeks have all played a lot of cricket&mdash;whether it&#39;s been in the IPL or for the international teams. And I guess that&#39;s the challenge for us.&nbsp;As you&#39;ve mentioned, the core of our squad has been together now for the last two or three years. And I guess a strategic decision that Cricket Ireland made a couple of years ago was trying to lead up to this World Cup with players that have played 30-plus games for Ireland. So, to have a core group of players that&#39;s done that will hopefully put us in good stead to be able to adapt to the international game and the pressure that that might bring us. Hopefully, we can keep adding a couple of the young and exciting guys that come through our interprovincial system into our wider squad and give them some experience and opportunities to bump heads with some of our experienced players and be at big games. As I&#39;ve mentioned, it&#39;ll be a sold-out game for the first two games. And hopefully, over periods of time, expose them to some game opportunities and grow their skill sets and confidence too.We&#39;ve done a fair bit of work as the support staff in the background, making sure that we do our homework from a preparation and planning point of view. And we&#39;ve enlisted Scott (Irvine) here, who has been hard at work doing a lot of statistical analysis and video analysis in the background around the players that we&#39;re going to come up against. I still feel it&#39;s really important that we use that information but that&#39;s not the focus. The focus for us is ensuring that we try and control the things that we do well and can do well and then want to focus on.&nbsp;It&#39;s understanding who we&rsquo;re playing against and using that information but really putting the focus on the way that we want to go about our business&mdash;creating that attention&mdash;and then focus on the way that we operate and using the opposition analysis tool for us to make sure that we can try and get there as quickly as we can.&nbsp;William Porterfield is retiring from international cricket. He has been a legend of Irish cricket and one of the most known figures all over the world when it comes to Ireland Cricket. He had been there for a really long time. What is your word about him&mdash;his contribution to Ireland cricket and how he has actually impacted the culture there?Yeah, he&#39;s played an instrumental part. And I think all the attributes that you&#39;ve seen over the last few days given to him, applauding him for his input or his efforts over the last 15 or 18 years has been enormous. A very, very knowledgeable and very, very sound person. I really enjoyed our conversations over the last month or so. I was really looking forward to working with him. Very fortunate that he&#39;s spending a bit of time with us in the build-up to the Indian series as a consultant coach for us. And we&#39;re looking to pick his brains on some of the important things that he&#39;s seen over his period as one of the leaders in the Irish environment. And, hopefully, at some stage, we can ensure that that sort of passion can get back into the Irish system as well.&nbsp;How do you see from the inside&mdash;having to work with a guy like Andy Balbirnie who as a leader is shaping up nicely? How is that partnership coming along?Yeah, look, the coach&mdash;captain relationship is really, really important. And I guess it&#39;s one of the intriguing pieces of the cricketing landscape. The captain goes on the field and can make the decisions that don&rsquo;t always necessarily correlate to the plan, because we&#39;ve got to try and play what&#39;s in front of us. I&#39;ve really enjoyed my time working with him. He&#39;s a very astute leader and a very astute cricketer, who does a lot of work behind the scenes to ensure that he gets the best out of his players. We&#39;ve spent a fair amount of time together, trying to ensure that we are on the same page around where we want to try and go&mdash;that&#39;s still a work in progress.&nbsp;We&#39;ve only been together a couple of times now. Once we&#39;ve gone into camp mode, we&#39;re going to be afforded that opportunity to spend every day together for a period of time. Hopefully, that relationships keep building and flourishing, and that we can get the best out of our individual players, but also the best out of our team and our squad, because it&#39;s got to be a squad effort over the summer, leading into the World Cup at the end of it. Hopefully, we can put a bit of depth to that squad, but also create some healthy competition so that guys don&#39;t necessarily look over their shoulders, but they know that there&#39;s someone that&#39;s going to push them from behind to ensure that they all perform.&nbsp;Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Cricket.com caught up with Heinrich Malan, Head Coach, Ireland Cricket Team, for an exclusive conversation regarding the team's plans for the India series, his coaching philosophy and more

Andy Balbirnie

William Porterfield

This summer is going to be a defining period for Ireland Cricket: Heinrich Malan

The BCCI has decided to give the Ireland-bound Indian T20 squad, led by Hardik Pandya, a three-day break before it leaves for the two-match series in Malahide. While Rahul Dravid, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant will be taking an early morning flight on Monday for London, the BCCI wants its T20 specialists to take a short break.&quot;All the players selected for the Ireland T20s are going home for a three-day break. Although there is no bio-bubble they didn&#39;t have families with them for the series and some are playing non-stop since IPL. It&#39;s only fair that they spend some time at home,&quot; a senior BCCI source told PTI on Sunday.It is understood that all the members of the Ireland-bound squad will assemble in Mumbai on June 23 along with NCA head VVS Laxman and his team of support staff.&quot;Laxman and the players will be in Mumbai by 23rd and they will leave the next day for Dublin. Since they are already coming from a series, you don&#39;t need time to get into the groove. Also it&#39;s a two-match series, so you won&#39;t be needing a lot of time to acclimatise,&quot; he explained.The T20I party, after playing the two games in Malahide on June 26 and 28, will move to the UK for T20 practice matches, which will coincide with the Test team&#39;s &#39;fifth&#39; game from last year in Edgbaston from July 1-5. However, it is understood that not all the players in the current T20I set-up will be retained for the England tour, as many regulars will be making a comeback in the team.&quot;By the time the England white-ball series starts, you will see all the stars playing till the T20 World Cup. There will be no break from thereon save smaller series like Zimbabwe.&quot;Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja will all be back in the mix. Only person missing out for the time being is KL Rahul. So a few of the current top-order players (playing versus South Africa), fringe pacers or an odd spinner might miss out,&quot; he stated.Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Ahead of India's T20I series against Ireland, the selected players are set to get a three-day break

Ireland-bound Indian squad to get three-day break to rejuvenate

Hardik Pandya&#39;s rise in international cricket has been stead-fast since 2016, when he made his debut. However, injuries have halted his career before indifferent form saw him being dropped out of the Indian squad. But a captaincy stint with the Gujarat Titans, where the franchise beat all odds to win the IPL changed everything overnight. The pacer, earlier in the day was named as the Indian captain for the Ireland tour, where India play two T20Is.&nbsp;&quot;Hardik has got so much experience now. He knows what he needs to do. He doesn&#39;t need to be told by coaches what he needs to do. He is a quality all-rounder, quality hitter,&quot; McGrath, who is Director of Coaching at the famed MRF Pace Foundation here, told reporters here.&quot;Some games go well, others don&#39;t as well. Overall, he knows what he needs to do,&quot; he added.McGrath, whose immaculate length outside the off-stump was a stuff of legends spoke about the art of fast bowling, something that a youngster like Umran Malik might find very handy.&quot;A lot of coaches think that bowling quick is the important thing. to just run and bowl as quick as you can is not the be all and end all.. Holding your action, bowling good areas, building pressure, taking wickets,&quot; he said.McGrath also felt that captaincy will be a good learning experience for young Rishabh Pant.&quot;It is about experience as well. He is an entertainer. He has to work out a way which is best for him. The culture is set at the top. you have to have a strong leader, who can lead from the front. It is a good learning experience as well,&quot; he added.About veteran seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has been doing well in the ongoing T20 series, McGrath said,&quot;Bhuvi is a quality bowler. He gets movement, very good control and deceptive pace. The experience he has will stand him in good stead.&quot;On MRF Pace Foundation products doing well, McGrath said, &quot;I&#39;m really pleased with how they have performed especially Mukesh Chaudhry. Even the others such as Khaleel Ahmed and Prasidh Krishna have performed quite well on a grand stage such as the IPL. A total of 19 of our boys have played in IPL thus far and that fills me with pride.&quot;(With inputs from PTI)Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Glenn McGrath spoke about Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant and Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Glenn McGrath

Rishabh Pant

Hardik doesn't need to be told what he needs to do: McGrath

The All-India Senior Selection Committee has picked a 17-member squad for the T20I series against Ireland and while most of the players from the South Africa series have been retained, the notable news has to be about Hardik Pandya being picked as the skipper. Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be his deputy in the two-match series.While Rishabh Pant would be in England for the fifth Test match, scheduled to be played from July 1, the Indian squad have the likes of Rahul Tripathi, Sanju Samson, and Suryakumar Yadav for the middle-order role. Tripathi has been a splendid performer for his IPL sides over the years but was unlucky to have missed out on so many tours.&nbsp;&quot;It is a very big opportunity, a dream come true (moment) and (I) appreciate (it),&quot; Tripathi told PTI.&quot;I am very happy that the selectors and everybody believed in me and whatever hardwork I have put in, I have got the rewards. And hopefully, if I get an opportunity to play, I will try and give my best,&quot; Tripathi added.Ravi Bishnoi will retain his place in the squad, with Dinesh Karthik being the designated wicket-keeper in the squad. Team India will play two T20Is on June 26th and 28th in Dublin.India&rsquo;s T20I squad: Hardik Pandya (Captain), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran MalikPowered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Hardik named the skipper for Ireland T20s, with maiden call-up for Rahul Tripathi in the squad

IRE vs IND T20 1st T20I, India tour of Ireland, 2022 - Commentary

IRE VS IND,1st T20I

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