Ireland vs India Prediction, 1st T20I – Who will win today’s match between IRE vs IND?

Ireland (IRE) will take on India (IND) in the first T20I of the series at Stormont Cricket Ground in Belfast on Friday, June 26. 

The series provides the Irish team with an opportunity to test itself against a top team. They were last seen in action in the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup earlier this year, where they failed to make it out of a group consisting of Australia, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and Oman. 

This is also India’s first T20I assignments since the T20 World Cup, where they successfully defended their crown and became the first three-time winners of the competition.

They come into this series after a major shake-up, with Shreyas Iyer set to participate in his first series as the newly-appointed skipper of the T20 side. The major talking point from this game will be whether the 15-year-old starlet Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will make his much-awaited debut with the senior side.

IRE vs IND: Match Details

Stormont Cricket Ground, Belfast: Pitch Report

The pitch at the Stormont Cricket Ground offers a balanced contest between bat and ball. The wicket has a considerable covering of grass but offers true and consistent bounce, with the ball coming onto the bat comfortably. Seamers can get lateral movement in their air and off the surface with the new ball, but the ground remains friendly to batters. 

IRE vs IND: Head-to-Head T20I Record

IRE vs IND: Predicted Playing XIs

Ireland:

Ross Adair, Stephen Doheny, Lorcan Tucker (C & WK), Harry Tector, Tim Tector, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Matthew Humphreys, Liam McCarthy, Gavin Hoey, Reuben Wilson

India: 

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi/Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna 

IRE vs IND: Probable Best Performers of the Match

Probable Best Batter: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

All eyes will be on the young Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who, at 15 years old, is taking the cricketing world by storm. The prodigious southpaw is coming off scoring a stellar 94 off just 29 balls against Sri Lanka A in the final of the recently concluded Tri-Nation series. He also notched up his half-century in just 11 balls, the fastest in List A history. He is coming off a dream IPL season, scoring 776 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 237.70, and will be looking to make a significant mark on his senior debut.

Probable Best Bowler: Arshdeep Singh

With the absence of Jasprit Bumrah from the T20I squad for the series against Ireland and England, the onus falls on Arshdeep Singh to lead the attack. The left-arm seamer had an ordinary season in the IPL, picking up 14 wickets at an economy rate of 10.21. He will be looking to get his form back on track and once again display why he has been a reliable strike bowler for the Indian team.

Today’s Match Prediction: India to win the match