Abhishek Sharma opened the batting in IND vs IRE 1st T20. PC- AFP
Team India lost their first-ever international fixture to Ireland at Belfast on Friday, and with that, the two-time defending T20 World Champions won't be able to win the ongoing series.
The newly appointed T20I skipper, Shreyas Iyer, had a disastrous start to his captaincy, as the batting put on an infamous show in the first of the two T20Is.
When Abhishek Sharma was going berserk, it seemed India could lose it by any means, but destiny had other plans. Having said that, the Indian opener not only failed to take the team over the line, but his half-century was heisted.
Abhishek Sharma punctures Ireland, but his 20-ball efforts goes in vain
During the Indian innings, the visitors were cruising at one point, with Abhishek Sharma going all guns blazing. In the eighth over of the innings, it seemed that the swashbuckling opener completed his half-century off just 19 balls, which would have been a world record-breaking one, before getting dismissed on the next ball he faced.
Also Read: Why Vaibav Sooryavanshi Is Not Playing Today's IND vs IRE 1st T20I?
Even the official broadcaster and top ball-by-ball platforms counted it as the Indian opener's 12th half-century in T20Is.
However, as soon as the ball ended, the official scorecard stated that Abhishek was dismissed on 49 runs, facing 20 balls. So what happened there?
Why Abhishek Sharma's 50 not counted?
To understand the whole Abhishek Sharma episode, we need to rewind to the second innings of the chase. Off Jai Moondra's bowling, the dasher missed his flick on a short of a length delivery towards short fine leg.
At the that moment, it was given as a run off a bat, but later, it was changed to a leg bye in the backdrop. Thus, that is the reason why it's not officially counted as a half-century for Abhishek Sharma.
Later in the game, after Abhishek's dismissal, India suffered a shambolic collapse, getting all out for 148 runs after being 80/3 inside eight overs. No one other than the left-handed opener could cross 25-run mark in the chase, as Ireland won by 34 runs.
Horror batting show cost India the series
For India, Shreyas Iyer won the toss and asked the Irish to bat first at Belfast on Friday evening. Things were panning in the favour of the Men in Green until Prasidh Krishna gave away 27 runs in a single over.
Although Lockan Tucker laid the platform with a fifty, his third as Ireland T20I captain in as many outings, it was George Delany's efforts that ensured a fiery finish for the hosts.
With the ball, the Irish bowlers never allowed the Indians to settle in. Debutants Jai Moondra (2/25 in four overs) and Matt Hollard (3/28 in four) had remarkable outings, and so did Matthew Humphreys (3/38 in 3.5 overs).
In the aftermath of the game, the leadership group, led by Gautam Gambhir and Shreyas Iyer, was heavily criticised by fans on social media. India will take on Ireland next on Sunday in the final T20I, but they can only level the series from here.
Also Read: All Unwanted Records By India After 1st Ever Defeat vs Ireland On Shreyas Iyer’s Captaincy Debut
.jpg?type=mq "Unwanted Records by Shreyas Iyer As India Captain")
