Nearly a year after his last international outing, star Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah is back on the cricket field, leading the team in the T20I series against Ireland. While Bumrah will lead the side, Ruturaj Gaikwad has been officially named India's vice-captain.
In the series-opener at Dublin on Friday evening, Bumrah has won the toss and elected to field first with the team handing out two debut caps.
Rinku Singh and Prasidh Krishna are both making their debuts.
"We'll bowl first, very happy to be here. The weather looks lovely. I feel good, looking forward to play some cricket. You realise what you were missing, very happy to be back. We expect nothing short of a fight from Ireland. As a fast bowler, I hope the pitch does something. We have two debuts - Rinku and Prasidh Krishna. Told them to just enjoy their cricket," Bumrah said at the toss.
On the other hand, Ireland skipper Paul Stirling said: "Looking forward to going out there. We have had a good run in Scotland, let's see what we can show today. This is the beginning of the road to 2024 and the World Cup. We're bringing Craig Young in today, excited to see what the extra pacer can do on this track."
Over the last year, Bumrah has missed key events including the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in 2022 and the World Test Championship final this summer, aside from a handful of bilateral games, but on the eve of his comeback, Bumrah said he is fully fit and ready to go full tilt in the series.
"You have to respect your body and give it time to recover. But what it does is makes you hungry. I understood the moment my body recovered, I could do that little bit extra. I'm not holding back. I have had many net sessions. Not just at NCA, even back home with the Gujarat team. I have no restrictions. The body feels good," Bumrah said in the press conference ahead of the first T20I.
Playing XIs
Ireland: Paul Stirling(c), Andrew Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker(w), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young, Joshua Little, Benjamin White
India: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson(w), Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah(c), Ravi Bishnoi
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