India took a 1-0 lead in the series against Ireland after completing a seven-wicket win over the hosts in the first T20I in Dublin on Sunday. The game in the Irish capital was delayed due to rain before being reduced to a 12 overs per team fixture. India skipper Hardik Pandya chose to field after winning the toss with clouds still hovering in the sky. Rain, however, didn't return to disrupt the match after the proceedings started. Taking advantage of the heavy conditions, India's fast bowlers got rid of Ireland skipper Andy Balbirnie for a duck before sending Paul Stirling (4) and Gareth Delany (8) back to the pavilion with not much on the board. Seasoned campaigner Bhuvneshwar Kumar was India's main weapon as he swung the ball around consistently. Bhuvneshwar Kumar got the better of Andrew Balbirnie with a beautiful inswinger before finishing the match with figures of 1/16 including a maiden.
But it wasn't Bhuvneshwar Kumar's stunning bowling display that grabbed headlines, instead, it was the speedometer that became a subject of debate on social media.
The pace measuring machine showed Bhuvneshwar Kumar delivering balls at a speed of 200kmph-plus on a few occasions, leaving fans in shock.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar's first ball read 201 kmph. The speedometer then showed him clocking 208 kmph a few deliveries later, leading several cricket lovers to tweet about the incident.
Some even compared Bhuvneshwar's speed with former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar. Shoaib Akhtar holds the world record for producing the fastest ball ever in the sport at 161.3 kph.
https://twitter.com/Crickfantastic1/status/1541119027723919361
Meanwhile, it was Yuzvendra Chahal who was the star for India with the ball as he finished with excellent figures of 1/11 in his three overs.
Yuzvendra Chahal, nonetheless, credited Hardik Pandya's “chilled” captaincy for his superb show against Ireland.
“It's very difficult to bowl in the cold, I felt like a finger spinner. But I had to adapt. The atmosphere under Hardik is chill, he gave me freedom to execute my plans. I'm wearing three sweaters so am not comfortable,” Yuzvendra Chahal said after his Man of the Match performance in Malahide.
Earlier in the match, Harry Tector's quickfire unbeaten 64 powered Ireland to 108/4 in their quota of 12 overs.
Chasing a stiff target of 109 runs, India got off to a flier as Deepak Hooda tore apart the Irish bowlers to hit a whirlwind 47 off only 29 deliveries.
Though India suffered a big blow in the form of Suryakumar Yadav perishing for a duck, Hardik Pandya wasted little time in sealing the deal as the visitors completed a resounding win in 9.2 overs.
“There was swing with the new ball, it got better after 5-6 overs. Thought it would get harder with the moisture but didn’t. It’s good to bowl Test match line and length, glad it worked out. Umran and other youngsters from around the world have made their debut because of the IPL which is great. We get good support wherever we go,” Bhuvneshwar Kumar claimed after the win.
Hardik Pandya, on the other hand, was ecstatic to win his first match as India's captain.
“Great to start the series with a win, fortunate we got a game. Important for our team to start with a win. Umran was kept back after I had a chat with him, he's more comfortable with the older ball and they batted fantastically. So hope he gets an opportunity. Some of the shots Harry played had me in awe. Look forward to him developing and taking Irish cricket again,” Hardik Pandya said.
Surprisingly, Hardik Pandya who picked up a wicket in Ireland’s innings is the first Indian captain to dismiss an opposition batter in the shortest format of the sport. Before the 28-year-old all-rounder, no Indian skipper has ever taken a wicket in T20Is.
Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie credited India's fast bowlers for testing his team's batters in swing-friendly conditions. He admitted that his side wasn't good in the first half of their batting but subsequently picked up to put up a decent score on the board.
Andrew Balbirnie also heaped rich praise on Harry Tector who remained unbeaten on 64 and was the main man behind Ireland reaching a score of 108 against the Indians.
“When you do your warm-up after getting in, you want to play. Credit to the groundstaff for readying things up and allowing a game to go on. It was high-class bowlers bowling with assisting conditions in the first innings. We weren't as good early on. There is belief in the batting line-up. Harry has been excellent in ODIs and was great here too,” Andrew Balbirnie concluded.
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