"Ruturaj Gaikwad India's new finisher?"- Fans troll opener as he was not needed with the bat in 1st T20I vs IRE

Indian opener Ruturaj Gaikwad's batting wasn't needed in the first T20I against Ireland in Malahide on Sunday. Hardik Pandya began his journey as India's captain with an emphatic seven-wicket win over the hosts.

The star with the bat was Deepak Hooda, who despite struggling in his first few deliveries, ended up unbeaten on 47 off just 29 balls. The right-handed batter was promoted to the top of the order and he once again made the most of the opportunity he got.

However, fans on Twitter were baffled to see Gaikwad not walk out to the middle along with Ishan Kishan. With every passing wicket, the curiosity of fans just increased exponentially as to whether he was injured or perhaps not needed.

They felt that if Gaikwad wasn't going to open, why wouldn't India play someone like Sanju Samson, who is more experienced at batting in the middle overs.

Here are some of the reactions:

Ruturaj Gaikwad reportedly had a niggle in his calf

Ruturaj Gaikwad wasn't on the field during India's last few overs and there are rumours that he injured his calf while fielding. That perhaps might have been something that stopped him from opening the batting.

Gaikwad endured a tough time at the top of the order in the recently concluded series against South Africa. Apart from a half-century in the third T20I, the Maharashtra-born batter failed to make a genuine impact at the international level.

It will be interesting to see whether Gaikwad recovers in time with a gap of just one day before the next game. If that doesn't happen, he is likely to be replaced by Samson or the uncapped Rahul Tripathi.

Ruturaj Gaikwad couldn't possibly complain about the lack of chances as he did receive a decent run of games to prove his mettle. However, with the main players coming back soon, the youngster might need to wait a bit longer for his next call-up.