The Men in Blue were completely outclassed by Ireland in the series opener.
India suffered a shocking 34-run defeat against Ireland in the first T20I of the two-match series at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast on Friday (June 26). This turned out to be the first win for the Irish team against the Men in Blue across formats.
Ireland captain Lorcan Tucker hit a crucial 50 off 36 balls, while Gareth Delany smashed a quickfire 49 off 32 balls, driving their team to a competitive 182/9 after the hosts were reduced to 30/3 inside the powerplay.
India's response collapsed completely despite a fiery half-century by opener Abhishek Sharma, who scored 50 runs off just 20 balls. The remainder of the batting order crumbled under pressure, leaving the visitors all out for 148 in 18.5 overs.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, former BCCI chief selector Kris Srikkanth slammed the Shreyas Iyer-led team’s below-par showing in the series opener against Ireland.
"This is a humiliating defeat for India. How can you lose to Ireland with your near full team minus Bumrah and Pandya? It's baffling that Ireland finished India with their spinners. India played with arrogance like they were sure of winning this match. Such was their attitude. It's a wakeup call for India ahead of a big series against England," Srikkanth said.
He was particularly critical of India's approach during the chase, citing that batters showed unnecessary aggression instead of assessing the conditions and playing on merit.
"It was overconfident batting from India. Everyone just came, swung the bat and got out. India has always had a problem in 180+ run-chases. It was upsetting to see India bat the way they did. While Abhishek Sharma asusual batted brilliantly, the rest just gave catching practice," Srikkanth stated.
"Tilak Varma played a needless reverse sweep. It is clear that if you bowl a string of dot balls to the Indian batters, they start hitting out and throwing their wickets away. Once the dots pile up, the Indian batters are in trouble and try to hit their way out. Except Abhishek, who was in freewheeling mode, the rest were suffocated," he added.
India will aim to bounce back and draw the series when they lock horns with Ireland in the second and final T20I on Sunday (June 28).