Ireland defeated India by one run in a dramatic second T20 at Stormont to secure their first-ever series victory over the world champions.
The result also handed India their first T20 series defeat since 2023.
Ireland had beaten India by 34 runs in the opening match on Friday. They then completed another major upset on Sunday as Jai Moondra and Matthew Hollard claimed three wickets each.
India needed eight runs from the final two deliveries. However, Harshit Rana was caught by Tim Tector off Harry Tector on the penultimate ball, confirming Ireland’s historic victory.
The series win completed an extraordinary weekend for Irish cricket.
On Friday, Ireland recorded their first victory over India in any format after 12 unsuccessful attempts.
It was also their first T20 win against India at the ninth attempt.
The opening match had attracted additional attention because India’s 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was expected to make his international debut.
However, Sooryavanshi remained out of the playing XI as Ireland shocked the defending T20 world champions.
Just 24 hours later, Ireland’s women recorded their first-ever victory at the Women’s T20 World Cup in England.
The men then added another landmark result on Sunday by completing the series win over India.
A sold-out crowd of around 4,000 spectators attended the second T20 at Stormont.
Many fans had hoped to see Sooryavanshi make his debut. However, the teenager remained on the sidelines for a second consecutive match.
India entered the contest under pressure to respond after losing the series opener.
Ireland batted first and reached 154-8.
Harry Tector led the hosts with 53 runs while playing his 100th international match.
India’s bowlers restricted Ireland during the later stages of the innings. However, the target proved difficult after the visitors suffered a disastrous start.
Moondra dismissed Sanju Samson lbw with the first ball of India’s innings.
The spinner had made his international debut only two days earlier. However, he quickly became one of the main figures in Ireland’s historic series victory.
Moondra was born in India before moving to Dublin for education in 2021.
He followed Samson’s dismissal by removing Abhishek Sharma and India captain Shreyas Iyer.
India slipped to 19-3 as Ireland took control of the match.
Ishan Kishan and Axar Patel also departed as the visitors continued to lose wickets.
However, Tilak Varma kept India in contention.
A 35-minute rain delay interrupted the chase. When play resumed, India needed to score at a rate of 10 runs per over during the final six overs.
Tilak increased the pressure on Ireland by hitting Hollard’s first ball of the 17th over for six.
However, Hollard responded immediately.
Tilak attempted another attacking shot on the following delivery but Liam McCarthy completed the catch.
The wicket left India struggling at 117-7.
Harshit Rana then launched a late counterattack and kept India’s hopes alive until the final over.
The visitors needed eight runs from the final two balls to win.
However, Rana was caught by Tim Tector off the bowling of his brother Harry Tector.
The dismissal ended India’s challenge and gave Ireland a one-run victory.
Ireland achieved the series win despite missing several important players.
Mark Adair, Curtis Campher and Josh Little were unavailable because of injuries.
As a result, Ireland handed opportunities to players including Moondra and Hollard.
Both players made an immediate impact.
Moondra and Hollard took three wickets each in the second T20 and played central roles in restricting India.
The victories will rank alongside Ireland’s famous wins over England and Pakistan.
However, defeating the world’s top-ranked T20 team twice in the same weekend represents one of the biggest achievements in Irish cricket history.
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