India are facing Ireland in their T20 World Cup 2024 at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York on June 5, Wednesday. India captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl first. India have gone without Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal. Notably, India are set to open with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the game after Jaiswal missed out on being part of the team.
The Indian team has fielded a strong Playing XI with batting till seven in the form of Ravindra Jadeja and seven bowling options, including Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya. Notably, Kuldeep Yadav, who was touted as India's first-choice spinner has missed out on being part of the Playing XI with the Men in Blue going with all three expert pacers.
Rohit Sharma opened up about the team's first game of the tournament and also on the playing combination. "We're going to bowl. Preparations have been alright. Have been managing ourselves in these new conditions. Has been challenging but we are all professionals. We played on a similar pitch and do know what to expect a little bit. I know it's going to be slightly different from what we're used to. But that's what the sport is. Not sure about the conditions too much, so thought having a target in front of us would be good. Guys missing out are Kuldeep, Sanju, Jaiswal and one more," Rohit said at the toss.
Ireland have not played Ross Adair, Craig Young, Neil Rock and Graham Hume for their game against India. "Coming with pretty good prep, we were in Netherlands recently (for the tri-series). We've got plenty of matchwinners in our side, want them to show up on the day. We're looking to assess conditions early," Ireland captain Paul Stirling said.
India and Ireland open their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against each other in New York. The two teams are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, USA and Canada. The Men in Blue played their only warm-up game before the tournament against Bangladesh on June 1 at the same venue where they are playing their tournament opener.
In the warm-up game, the Men in Blue did spring some surprises in the batting combination. Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant were given a good chance to prove themselves in the only practice game with the former getting to open alongside team captain Rohit Sharma. Meanwhile, Pant was sent in at No.3 as Virat Kohli was rested from the game as he landed in the USA only on the eve of the warm-up fixture. Yashasvi Jaiswal was not given a shot with the bat in the game against Bangladesh.
Playing XIs:
India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj
Ireland (Playing XI): Paul Stirling(c), Andrew Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker(w), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Joshua Little, Benjamin White
