Cricket history was made at Stormont, Belfast, on Friday, June 26, as Ireland registered their maiden win over India in international cricket. The hosts beat India by 34 runs in the first T20I of India’s tour of Ireland 2026. Ireland had never beaten India in any format of international cricket before this match, making it a landmark result for Irish cricket.
Ireland batted first and posted 182 for 9, powered by a composed half-century from captain Lorcan Tucker (50 off 36 balls) and 49 off 32 from Gareth Delany. India, the reigning T20 World Cup champions now under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer, never gained control of the chase and were bowled out for 148 in 18.5 overs. The result drew a reaction from former India allrounder Irfan Pathan on social media.
“Wow. Didn’t thought I will see this Scoreline of team India vs Ireland. Well Played Ireland,” Pathan wrote on X.
Wow. Didn’t thought I will see this Scoreline of team India vs Ireland.
Well Played Ireland.
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) June 26, 2026
What happened in the 1st India vs Ireland T20I at Belfast?
Ireland’s debutant bowlers made an immediate impression. Matt Hollard, playing his first international match, claimed three wickets for 28 runs in four overs and earned the Player of the Match award. Fellow debutant Jai Moondra contributed with the ball as well, putting the brakes on India in the middle overs.
Harshit Rana was India’s best bowler with 3 for 24, while Abhishek Sharma top-scored in the chase with a quickfire 50 off 20 balls. India lost wickets at regular intervals and could never string together the partnership the chase demanded.
The Ireland captain reflected on the result. “It was like a Test match for a bit. I think it’s pretty special to beat the world champions at home. Credit to the lads. All the work behind the scenes from Cricket Ireland,” Tucker said at the post-match presentation.
The India skipper Shreyas Iyer focused on the second T20I. “Initially, the bowlers were bowling venom. But in between we lost the execution and let them hit us straight down the ground, where the boundaries are smaller. I thought 140 would have been a good score to chase, given the start we had with the ball. But yeah, great start as a captain. Definitely, we are going to forget what happened and there’s a lot to learn from this game. Going to come out all guns blazing in the next game,” Iyer said.
The two sides meet again in the second T20I at Belfast on Sunday, June 28.
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