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The Men in Blue got their ICC T20 World Cup 2024 campaign off to a flying start, beating Ireland by a convincing 8-wicket margin in their opening match at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
As the pitch was favouring the fast bowlers, India won the toss and decided to bowl first, in which Arshdeep Singh initially took 2 wickets and put Ireland on the backfoot; after that, Hardik Pandya took 3 wickets, Bumrah took 2 wickets, and Siraj and Axar Patel took 1 wicket each and restricted Ireland to 96.
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Solid Start, Nervous Middle, Pant’s Finishing Style:
India came out to chase; their start was not that special. Virat Kohli gave his wicket to Mark Adair after scoring just 1 run. Rishabh Pant came to bat at number 3, and captain Rohit Sharma played amazing and won the match in 12.2 overs. After the drinks break, Rohit Sharma retired hurt and went back to the pavillion. Rishabh Pant hit a six with an amazing shot and made India win its first T20 World Cup match.
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Match Score and Key Performance
Ireland: 96/10 (Overs: 16)
- Key Performers: Gareth Delany (26 off 14), Joshua Little (14 off 13)
India: 97/2 (Overs: 12.2)
- Key Performers: Rohit Sharma (52 off 37), Rishabh Pant (36 off 26)
Looking Ahead to T20 World Cup 2024
With a convincing win under their belt, India will now shift their focus to their highly anticipated clash against arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday at the same venue. The IND vs PAK promises to be a high-octane encounter, and all eyes will be on both teams to see who emerges victorious. Everyone’s eyes will be on Virat Kohli in this match. He will also not be happy not to perform in this match, but this year too, we will see Virat repeating the last T20 World Cup match. Ireland, meanwhile, will look to bounce back when they face Canada on Friday.