Match abandoned without a ball bowled
Quite ironic that the sun has come out after the match being called off. India take the trophy and pose for the cameras. Some of the players are now taking turns to get individual pictures with the trophy. The others are taking pictures with fans. It may have been only two matches (one and a half) which were possible but there was plenty to gain for India. None more so than Bumrah's return to action, and him bowling so well, like he was never away. So that's all we have from here. Until next time, it's goodbye.
Bumrah: Very happy to be back and play some cricket. Frustrating when you're waiting for a game to happen. Did not see this coming, weather was fine in the morning. An honour to lead the side, everyone was very eager and enthusiastic. Whenever you get an opportunity to lead your side, anyone would love to do that. As a cricketer, you always want responsibilty. All good, no complaints. Not one year (out of the team), 10-11 months (he jokingly corrects Alan Wilkins). Makes my job easier when players are so confident, and they tell me what to do.
Stirling: Just periods of good cricket from us in patches. Lot of positives, but it's about finishing those games off. Hopefully we'll take these learnings. Brilliant to have India over and play in front of good crowds here. Would've been happier if we could've got some fresh faces out there tonight. It's a buildup now for the next sort of 10 months.
17:58 Local Time, 16:58 GMT, 22:28 IST: Called off! The rain has stopped for now but the damage has been done as there are plenty of damp patches on the outfield. Players are shaking hands in the middle. The series finishes 2-0 in favour of India.
17:38 Local Time, 16:38 GMT, 22:08 IST: We've got just over an hour before the cut-off time of 6:47pm local. The initial inspection from the umpires led to them concluding that they need to have another one at 5:45pm local. Just hearing that the rain has stopped and that the covers are being removed
16:54 Local Time, 15:54 GMT, 21:24 IST: Still raining. Looks grim out there. Cricket Ireland have tweeted that the umpires will have an inspection in 20 minutes.
16:10 Local Time, 15:10 GMT, 20:40 IST: Just under hour on from the previous update and I wish I could be the bearer of some positive news but unfortunately, there isn't anything positive to update on. The wait continues. The BCCI has just put out information saying that we won't start losing overs until 9:15pm IST
15:17 Local Time, 14:17 GMT, 19:47 IST: Nothing much to report. Still drizzling.
India lead the series 2-0 having put in a strong performance in the previous match. Some good runs for Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson and Rinku Singh, followed by another cracking effort from Jasprit Bumrah who's hardly showing any rustiness of being out for so long. Prasidh Krishna was very impressive with his pace and bounce as well, boding well for India's pace stocks.
Hello and welcome to our coverage of the third T20I of this series between Ireland and India. There's a mood of celebration in India after the successful landing of Chandrayaan. Not much is going to dampen it today, but as far as the cricket is concerned, the weather in Dublin is a bit of a dampener. The toss has been delayed due to rain
Preview:
Despite the minor blip in the tricky run chase in the opening T20I, it was no surprise that India were back to their best in the second game which helped them take an unassailable 2-0 lead. Now that the series is secure, the final T20I can be used as an opportunity to hand game time to the fringe players. Both teams went into the second game with an unchanged XI, which is unlikely to be the case now.
The visitors are expected to stick to the batting lineup with no reserve batter available. The team management would anyway want the likes of Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Tilak Varma to play as much as possible given all three will be in the frame to make it to the World Cup next year. However, with Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar not making much of an impact in the two games, there could be space for the likes of Shahbaz Ahmed and Jitesh Sharma to come into the XI. Jitesh in particular has been mighty impressive in the IPL over the last two seasons and will be itching to finally make his international debut, which might come as a pure batter if the team management decides to give Sanju Samson another outing.
In the bowling department, even though Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna have bigger goals to focus on given they were picked in the squad for the Asia Cup, they would still most likely prefer getting more games under the belt having just returned to the national setup. That might keep Mukesh Kumar and Avesh Khan in the bench once again unless Arshdeep Singh makes way for one of them.
The hosts will also have some selection calls to make especially with Harry Tector going through a dull run. Ross Adair, who made his debut earlier this year, is an exciting batter with an impressive strike rate of over 150 in T20 cricket. And if George Dockrell isn't going to bowl, Gareth Delany might fancy his chances.
When: Ireland vs India, 3rd T20I, August 23 at 3 PM local time, 7:30 PM IST
Where: The Village, Dublin
What to expect: A good batting surface but there could be a bit of rain around as well. It isn't likely to have a significant impact but might influence the decision at the toss.
Team Watch
Ireland: This is an opportunity for Ireland to hand a game to the likes of Ross Adair, Theo van Woerkom and Gareth Delany.
Probable XI: Ross Adair, Paul Stirling (C), Andrew Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker (WK), Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young, Theo van Woerkom, Benjamin White
India: While the visitors would find it difficult to make changes in the bowling department, the likes of Jitesh Sharma and Shahbaz Ahmed could be in the frame to get into the XI.
Probable XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma/Shivam Dube, Shahbaz Ahmed/Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Prasidh Krishna, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh/Mukesh Kumar
Squads:
Ireland Squad: Andrew Balbirnie, Paul Stirling(c), Lorcan Tucker(w), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young, Joshua Little, Benjamin White, Gareth Delany, Fionn Hand, Ross Adair, Theo van Woerkom
India Squad: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson(w), Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah(c), Ravi Bishnoi, Mukesh Kumar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Jitesh Sharma, Avesh Khan