Belfast prepares to host India’s T20 squad as new era begins against Ireland

By Sanjay Menon — 25 June 2026 — 4 min read

India’s arrival in Belfast

The Indian cricket squad has arrived in Belfast for a two-match T20I series against Ireland, marking the city’s first hosting of the Men in Blue in 19 years. This series initiates a new T20 era for India under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer. While some players opted for rest upon arrival, others, including Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma, Abhishek Sharma, and Axar Patel, explored the city streets, accompanied by fielding coach T Dilip. They were observed stopping for coffee, and the Indian captain also visited a Japanese restaurant.

During overseas tours, players often find more freedom to move in public, as large crowds are less common. Axar Patel and Abhishek Sharma were seen filming videos, making the most of their downtime. Additionally, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s parents have reportedly joined him in the UK, with the BCCI granting permission for their stay throughout his time there. They are expected to attend both T20Is in Belfast.

The team also has plans to visit the Titanic Belfast museum, a popular attraction that tells the story of the RMS Titanic. There is interest within the squad to experience this iconic landmark before departing the city.

Squad dynamics and selection challenges

The team management faces a significant decision regarding the inclusion of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the starting eleven. The 15-year-old has garnered attention following his performance in the IPL and a notable 29-ball 94 for India A against Sri Lanka A in a tri-series one-day match. However, accommodating Sooryavanshi, an opener, would require adjusting the current top three of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, and Ishan Kishan, all of whom performed well in the ICC T20 World Cup final win against New Zealand in March.

Samson, Abhishek, and Kishan each scored fifties in that final, which was India’s last assignment in the shortest format. If Sooryavanshi is included, one of Samson or Abhishek would need to bat lower in the order or be left out. While Samson has previously batted at numbers 4 and 5, those positions are now likely to be filled by captain Shreyas Iyer and vice-captain Tilak Varma. The number 6 slot, traditionally for an all-rounder, could be taken by players like Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, or Suryansh Shedge.

Moving Samson to number 6 could also limit India to five bowlers, a department already facing challenges with the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj, and Varun Chakravarthy. Samson has strong statistics as an opener, with 926 runs from 28 innings, including three hundreds and four fifties, and a strike rate of 181.93. His strike rates at numbers 3, 4, and 5 are 121, 129, and 127 respectively. Abhishek Sharma, currently the number 1 T20I batter, has also been effective as an opener, scoring 1414 runs from 43 innings with two hundreds and 10 fifties, and a strike rate of 192.38.

All three players—Abhishek (563), Kishan (602), and Samson (477)—had successful outings in IPL 2026. Kishan also recently scored 125 against Afghanistan in the second ODI at Lucknow. Head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Shreyas Iyer will need to carefully consider whether to debut Sooryavanshi or maintain the current winning combination. The presence of Sooryavanshi is expected to put pressure on Samson and Abhishek to perform consistently.

Upcoming challenges and team compositions

Shreyas Iyer will be keen to begin his full-time captaincy with a series victory, building on his leadership experience from captaining Kolkata Knight Riders to a title win in 2024 and leading Punjab Kings to the IPL final a year later. On the bowling front, India features a second-string line-up, providing an opportunity for players to prove themselves in this series and the subsequent one against England.

Harshit Rana’s return from injury adds options to the pace unit, where he will compete with Prasidh Krishna and Prince Yadav. Both Prasidh and Prince are in good form, with Prasidh recently taking a career-best fifer in the third ODI against Afghanistan in Chennai. Ireland, on the other hand, will be without several key players due to injuries, including Josh Little, Mark Adair, Paul Stirling, and Curtis Campher.

Ireland will be led by new captain Lorcan Tucker and includes capable T20 players such as George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, and Jai Moondra, who is of Indian origin. The first match is scheduled to begin at 6 PM IST.

The squads for the series are as follows:

• India: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Sharma, Suryansh Shedge, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Prince Yadav, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
• Ireland: Lorcan Tucker (captain), Ross Adair, Ben Calitz, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Matthew Humphreys, Gavin Hoey, Matthew Hollard, Liam McCarthy, Jai Moondra, Harry Tector, Tim Tector, Reuben Wilson.

Source: revsportz.in