India vs Ireland: Revisiting the Irishmen's cricketing journey since becoming Full Member

It’s not often that India and Ireland lock horns on the cricketing field. Ever since Trent Johnston’s boys shocked Pakistan in what was their first big impression at the elite level, the Men in Blue have played Ireland only a handful of times, all the matches taking place away from home.

After touring for a one-off ODI in 2007 right after a disastrous ODI World Cup campaign, India’s next trip to Ireland would come more than a decade later in 2018, taking place around the same time as the tour of England. It would be a similar case four years later, with the Indian team once again adding a couple of matches in Ireland on the side while preparing to face England across formats.

Three meetings between the two teams took place in ICC events, including in the 2011 and 2015 World Cups.

India, though, have won each of the three ODIs and five T20Is against Ireland. And though they are fielding a second-string team led by the returning Jasprit Bumrah, they will be backing themselves to maintain that unblemished record in the three-match T20I series that starts on Friday, with all three games taking place at the Malahide Cricket Club Ground in Dublin.

Ahead of the series opener, we take a look at some of the key moments in Ireland’s cricketing journey in recent years, starting with their promotion to Full Member status:

Ireland promoted to Test status

Ireland and Afghanistan became the newest entrants to the Test club, gaining eligibility to play red-ball cricket in the international arena less than a decade ago in 2017, a decade since their famous triumph over Pakistan in Kingston. It was thus fitting that their first opponents in the format would be that very side.

Pakistan rode on half-centuries from Faheem Ashraf (83) and Asad Shafiq (62) to declare on 310/9 after Ireland won the toss and elected to field in Malahide in the summer of 2018. London-born pacer Tim Murtagh making an early impression with figures of 4/45. The hosts, though were shot out for a lowly 130 in reply, with Kevin O’Brien top-scoring with 40, resulting in them having to follow-on.

#OnThisDay in 2018, Kevin O’Brien became Ireland’s first Test centurion