Saturday's practice match against Bangladesh may have given them some idea of the drop-in pitches at the temporary New York stadium, but the real test awaits them. In the first match on the ground between South Africa and Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka was out for 77 runs, due to which questions were raised about the wicket.
The pitch will pose a big challenge to the Indian batsmen due to its low bounce and slow nature. Apart from the pitch, this game will give the Indian team a real picture of their preparations before they take on arch-rivals Pakistan at the same venue on Sunday.
The biggest question for India before the match is who will open with captain Rohit Sharma. Will it be Virat Kohli or left-handed batsman Yashasvi Jaiswal? Kohli has proved his worth at the top of the IPL after finishing the tournament as the leading run-scorer while the southpaw and skipper failed to remain consistent in the cash-rich league.Apart from the initial conundrum, Rishabh Pant is likely to play as the first-choice wicketkeeper-batsman after his explosive half-century in the warm-up after the IPL season.
Although Sanju Samson has done no wrong in not deserving that spot, Pant's unpredictable shot-making gives him an edge over the Kerala batsman.
Another question for the Indian team will be which bowling combination to choose for the encounter, whether to go with three fast bowlers including Hardik Pandya and two spinners, or four fast bowlers and one spinner.
The team management will probably stick with Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja as the spin pair. Whereas, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj or Arshdeep Singh will lead the pace attack and Pandya will act as the fifth bowling option.Ireland, on the other hand, will be hoping to spoil India's party with their comfortable style of cricket in Group A. The experienced Paul Stirling will lead the team which has a number of experienced T20 players like Andy Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher and Josh Tongue.
Despite having a 7-0 winning record against Ireland in the T20 World Cup, the Men in Blue will not take the opponents lightly as they are well aware of their competitive mindset.
Probable XI:
India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (captain), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh/Mohammad Siraj.
Ireland: Andy Balbirnie, Paul Stirling (captain), Lorcan Tucker, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young/Ben White, Josh Little.
The pitch will pose a big challenge to the Indian batsmen due to its low bounce and slow nature. Apart from the pitch, this game will give the Indian team a real picture of their preparations before they take on arch-rivals Pakistan at the same venue on Sunday.
The biggest question for India before the match is who will open with captain Rohit Sharma. Will it be Virat Kohli or left-handed batsman Yashasvi Jaiswal? Kohli has proved his worth at the top of the IPL after finishing the tournament as the leading run-scorer while the southpaw and skipper failed to remain consistent in the cash-rich league.Apart from the initial conundrum, Rishabh Pant is likely to play as the first-choice wicketkeeper-batsman after his explosive half-century in the warm-up after the IPL season.
Although Sanju Samson has done no wrong in not deserving that spot, Pant's unpredictable shot-making gives him an edge over the Kerala batsman.
Another question for the Indian team will be which bowling combination to choose for the encounter, whether to go with three fast bowlers including Hardik Pandya and two spinners, or four fast bowlers and one spinner.
The team management will probably stick with Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja as the spin pair. Whereas, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj or Arshdeep Singh will lead the pace attack and Pandya will act as the fifth bowling option.Ireland, on the other hand, will be hoping to spoil India's party with their comfortable style of cricket in Group A. The experienced Paul Stirling will lead the team which has a number of experienced T20 players like Andy Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher and Josh Tongue.
Despite having a 7-0 winning record against Ireland in the T20 World Cup, the Men in Blue will not take the opponents lightly as they are well aware of their competitive mindset.
Probable XI:
India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (captain), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh/Mohammad Siraj.
Ireland: Andy Balbirnie, Paul Stirling (captain), Lorcan Tucker, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young/Ben White, Josh Little.
