India captain Shreyas Iyer surprised everyone when he decided to bat after winning the toss against England in the first T20I at the Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street, on Wednesday. The conditions were overcast, with a possibility of rain. The pitch was green, and any other captain would have bowled first, but India’s captain took a different call and opted to bat after the coin toss went in his favour.

Former India wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik mentioned that the Ireland series loss was the reason behind Iyer’s call. The Irish side whitewashed the Indian team in a two-match T20I assignment. The Men in Blue were unable to chase down targets in both games. They suffered a 34-run defeat in the opening game and a one-run defeat in the second game.

“Batting first was a good decision despite cloudy weather conditions. The general perception is to chase down totals,” Karthik told Cricbuzz.

“There was a threat of rain, and I think it was due to the Ireland hangover that India decided to bat first instead of chasing,” he added.

Meanwhile, Iyer spoke about the Ireland series after winning the toss. “It is a new series for us. We have a great opportunity to perform. This is my second series as a captain, and I am excited for the challenge. Ireland is history for us. We wanted to bat, and we got what we wanted. We had a good practice session, and it helped us to get acclimatized to the surroundings.

“We learned a lot from the Ireland series. We know about England’s strengths and weaknesses, so we’re looking forward to the contest.

“There is a decent amount of grass on the wicket. We had practiced on a similar track yesterday. I can’t predict how the wicket will behave, but we will go in with good intent,” he said.

Iyer and Abhishek Sharma’s half-centuries took India’s score to 189 for 7 in 20 overs before the match was called off due to rain.