Vaibhav Sooryavanshi To Come In For? India's Predicted Playing XI For 2nd T20I Vs Ireland 2026

India predicted XI for 2nd T20I Vs Ireland [Source: AFP]

India was supposed to cruise past the Irish challenge with utmost ease in the first T20I of the tour, but the home team sprang a surprise as they dismantled the Indian batters to take a 1-0 lead in the series. This was India’s first T20I assignment after winning the World Cup, and the team failed to deliver the goods on Friday.

The visitors needed 183 runs to win the first T20I, but the Indian side crumbled under pressure and couldn’t chase down the total. The Men in Blue scored just 148 and lost by 34 runs as the Irish bowlers, particularly Matt Hollard destroyed the famed Indian batting.

The second T20I of the series will take place on Sunday, and India needs to fix a couple of things in their lineup. Here is the predicted playing XI of India, with a potential debut for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

India's playing XI Vs Ireland, 2nd T20I, 2026

Openers and top order: Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan

Everyone expected Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to make his India debut in the first T20I, but the fans were left disappointed as the management decided to continue with the pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma. The pair had helped India win the T20 World Cup, and the team wanted to continue with the same combination.

However, after the embarrassing loss in the first T20I, there is a need for a change at the top, and India should take a punt by bringing in Sooryavanshi. While Abhishek was the lone warrior for India in the first T20I, Samson failed to deliver the goods, and perhaps India should rest him for the series finale.

If Samson goes out, Ishan Kishan can keep wickets, and he’ll be the mainstay at number 3. The southpaw failed in the first T20I, but he’ll be eager to get some runs before the England tour.

Middle order and all-rounders: Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar

The entire middle-order, barring Shivam Dube failed with the bat, but on the basis of just one loss, the management won’t make any changes. Shreyas Iyer, the newly appointed T20I captain will play at 4, and Tilak Varma, who has been heavily criticised, will continue to bat at 5.

Also Read: All Unwanted Records By India After 1st Ever Defeat vs Ireland On Shreyas Iyer’s Captaincy Debut

Axar Patel impressed with the ball, but he failed with the bat. However, he is too good a player to be dropped, and India would hope that he gets his batting mojo back in the second T20I.

Should Washington Sundar be dropped? Yes. Will he be dropped? No. For some reason, India have trusted Sundar despite his poor performances for India in whites. Don’t expect a change as India will once again trust him to play at number 6 or 7 in the batting order, but the all-rounder will be under pressure to perform.

Bowlers: Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav

On his comeback after injury, Harshit Rana was impressive as he finished with figures of 3 for 24. He will once again be the leader of the pace attack alongside Arshdeep Singh, the wily left-arm pacer.

Prasidh conceded 27 runs against Ireland in a single over, and it was the most expensive by an Indian bowler against Ireland in T20Is. Moreover, the pacer has conceded 125 runs across his last two T20Is, the most by a bowler in two successive T20Is.

Hence, the time has come for India to drop the out-of-form pacer, and bring in fresh energy in the form of Prince Yadav, who can cause havoc with his sheer pace.

India's predicted XI for second T20I Vs Ireland

Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan(wk), Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav

Also Read: Shreyas Iyer Hits Lowest Level As India's T20I Captain In Ireland