India captain Shreyas Iyer was candid in his assessment after the Men in Blue suffered a shock T20I series defeat to Ireland, admitting that the hosts outplayed his side in all departments. India went down by one run in the second and final T20I, handing Ireland a memorable 2-0 series victory.
Ireland posted a modest 154/8 in their 20 overs, but India’s batting faltered early in the chase. Regular wickets inside the powerplay left the visitors with too much to do, and despite a spirited fightback, they fell agonisingly short. The defeat ended India’s 16-series unbeaten run in T20Is and marked their first bilateral series loss in the format since August 2023, coming immediately after their T20 World Cup triumph.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Iyer admitted that India failed to assess the conditions as well as Ireland.
“Ireland showed great professionalism and had a clear understanding of how the wicket was going to play. Their fielding was phenomenal as well. Congratulations to them on a comprehensive win. I thought our bowlers executed their plans really well, but we fell short with the bat. We didn’t assess the conditions well enough and also failed to convert singles into twos. They clearly outplayed us in those aspects,” said Iyer.
After winning the toss, Iyer opted to bowl first, and debutant Prince Yadav made an immediate impact with a superb three-wicket haul. Shivam Dube and Arshdeep Singh chipped in with two wickets apiece as India restricted Ireland to 154/8.
Harry Tector top-scored for the hosts with a composed 53, anchoring the innings after early setbacks.
Iyer was also full of praise for debutant Prince Yadav.
“As I mentioned earlier, Prince has gained valuable experience in the IPL, and he’s carried that confidence into international cricket. He has his own plans and ideas with the ball, but what stood out was his attitude and approach. It was very impressive.”
India’s chase, however, got off to a disastrous start. Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma were dismissed for ducks, while Shreyas Iyer (10) and Ishan Kishan (12) also departed inside the powerplay, leaving the visitors reeling.
Tilak Varma kept India’s hopes alive with a fighting half-century, while Harshit Rana produced a late cameo of 21 off just 10 balls. However, once Tilak was dismissed, Ireland regained control and held their nerve in the closing stages to seal a dramatic one-run victory and complete a famous 2-0 series sweep over India.
