5 min readJun 28, 2026 11:17 PM IST Having gone 16 consecutive series without losing, which included laying hands on two T20 World Cups in 2024 and 2026, India’s proud run came to a grinding halt at Belfast against Ireland. If the defeat in the first T20I on Friday came as a shock, on Sunday Ireland held their nerve when Harshit Rana threatened a heist as they won by one run to take the series 2-0. Prior to Friday, India hadn’t lost any match to Ireland. In three days they have lost two and a series. And it is another ignominious feat for head coach Gautam Gambhir, who has seen a few lows in his stint so far. Next up lies England on Wednesday and to recover the lost face, India may well have to turn to 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. For the second outing in a row, the established India batting unit failed to chase a target that was within their reach. Troubling them again was Jai Moondra, the left-arm seamer who is waiting to …