The Indian team will play their first T20I since winning the 2026 T20 World Cup on Friday (June 26) at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast, which will mark a significant moment as Shreyas Iyer will lead the national team for the first time. The star batsman replaced Suryakumar Yadav in the top job after earning a comeback to the national team in the shortest format.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will have the eyes of the world as his debut for the Indian team is awaited. The 15-year-old will create history by breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s record and becoming the youngest Indian cricketer to play international cricket.
However, it is unlikely that will happen in the first game, as the Men in Blue are expected to play their first-choice XI, which should include the top three that helped the country win the T20 World Cup 2026. Abhishek Sharma should retain the opening spot with Sanju Samson, with Ishan Kishan expected to bat at number three.
Skipper Shreyas is likely to slot in at number four, where his predecessor Suryakumar batted, in what will be his first T20I appearance for India since December 2023. His deputy Tilak Varma is set to bat at number five with all-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, and Axar Patel to follow.
With Varun Chakravarthy ruled out due to injury and Kuldeep Yadav not selected, Ravi Bishnoi is likely to play after earning a comeback to the national team. Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana are expected to start as the two specialist pacers.
This means that alongside Vaibhav even Prince Yadav will have to wait longer for his T20I debut.
India Likely XI For 1st T20I vs Ireland: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh.
