At the Malahide Club in Dublin on Sunday, India defeated Ireland by 33 runs, despite Andrew Balbirnie's half-century.
Ireland felt the heat when pursuing and was limited to 152 for 8 after India built a solid 185 for 5 after being allowed to bat first.
The first T20I, which was plagued by rain, was won by India by two runs using the DLS technique.
Fine hands by Gaikwad (58, 43 balls, 6x4, 1x6), Sanju Samson (40, 26 balls, 5x4 1x6) and Rinku Singh (38, 21 balls, 2x4, 3x6) moulded India’s charge with the bat.
However, on a genuine surface, Indian bowlers were forced to support their batsmen, and as a result, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, and Ravi Bishnoi combined to take six wickets.
The pacer knocked out Irish skipper Paul Stirling and Lorcan Tucker in his first over to reduce the hosts to 19 for 2, continuing Prasidh's stunning comeback to professional cricket.
Leg-spinner Bishnoi used a googly to castle Harry Tector, which limited Ireland to 31 for 3 in the PowerPlay.
Ireland's progress was made more challenging by the steadily rising asking rate, which tended to be 12 and above.
Balbirnie led that small comeback, scoring an impressive fifty (71, 52 balls, 5x4, 4x6) before falling to Arshdeep Singh.
His ejection put an end to Ireland's tenuous chances of winning, and Mark Adair's 15-ball 23 only served to artificially ratchet up the tension.
But before the bowlers grabbed control, India's batsmen dominated the pitch.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, who batted first and hit 18 off 11 balls with a couple of fours and a six off bowler Josh Little, gave the batters a quick start to the innings.
However, the innings fell short of expectations when Jaiswal's attempt to pull Craig Young landed up in Curtis Campher's clutches at deep.
For the second consecutive game, Tilak Varma struggled to make an impact; this time, a poorly placed pull off Barry McCarthy was intercepted by George Dockrell close to the ropes.
India needed some stability and momentum after going 35 for 2. Through their third wicket partnership, Samson and Gaikwad gave the visitors that.
They combined for 71 runs to push India beyond the 100-run threshold in the 12th over.
Samson played a lovely, modest innings of 40 off 26 balls with five fours and a six, sparking selection debates before to India's roster announcement for the Asia Cup 2023 on Monday.
In the eleventh over, Little was pummelling by Samson for 18 runs.
He obtained three consecutive fours with an inside-out loft over covers, a slap over covers, and a guide through the cordon.
He added a swivel pull that brought him to a maximum over the fine leg to that aggressive train.
But a stroke of bad luck put an end to his stay. Samson attempted to play leg-spinner White over the covers after receiving a wide delivery at the off-stump, but he was only able to draw the delivery back on to his stumps.
India had a strong starting point to reach a significant total at 105 for 3 in the 13th over.
Gaikwad consistently maintained his end. With a strong pull off White, the right-hander, who is second in T20Is, reached his fifty.
McCarthy's slow ball put an end to Gaikwad's inning, though. India was currently 129 for 4.
Rinku Singh and Shivam Dube, two powerful hitters in India's lineup, demonstrated their skills in the 19th and 20th overs.
McCarthy's penultimate over, in which Rinku torched him for two sixes and a four, went for 22 runs, while Adair's final over, in which India sped ahead, provided 20 runs.