Ireland vs India 2018, 1st T20I: Five reasons why Ireland lost

#2 Lacklustre bowling effort in first 15 overs

The Indian openers handled the Irish bowlers with ease

The 160-run partnership between Sharma and Dhawan at the top of the Indian batting order killed the game even before it went into the second innings. The two openers toyed with the bowling attack, using their left-hand-right-hand combination to smash boundaries at will.

While their strong performance on the day was down to the individual brilliance of the two batsmen, an unimpressive bowling effort by the hosts was also a significant contributing factor.

The medium-pace bowlers in the Irish attack kept delivering the ball in the hitting range of the two batsmen outside the off-stump, and the Indians kept making the most out of the same.