India A, under the leadership of Devdutt Padikkal, went 1-0 up in the two-match series against Australia A after winning the first four-day unofficial Test by 162 runs at the Cricket Association Puducherry Siechem Ground on Friday. The visitors folded up in the second session on Day 4, and there was no fight from Australia A as Tushar Deshpande, Shams Mulani, Anshul Kamboj and Tanush Kotian ran riot. For the majority of the contest, India ran away with it, and Australia only had their noses in front on Day 1 for two sessions, when they reduced the hosts to 97/5.
Player of the Match Kumar Kushagra (113) and Kotian (69) then provided rear-guard action on the opening day to rescue India A, and eventually the hosts posted a solid total of 334 in the first innings. On a pitch that was offering ample assistance to the spinners, Mulani displayed his class the next day, taking four wickets as Australia A fell like a pack of cards. The side was dismissed for 171, allowing India A to gain a substantial lead.
Even the Australia A bowlers came into their own in the second innings, making full use of the up-and-down pitch, but India got to 199 owing to Kushgra’s unbeaten 46-run knock.
Devdutt Padikkal and Sai Sudharsan, who are fighting it out for the No.3 slot for the upcoming New Zealand Tests, got one fifty each in the A fixture. Sudharsan, who played as an opener, slammed a half-century (57) in the first innings, while Padikkal got one (59) in the second innings, playing a captain’s hand.
The need of the hour was for Sudharsan to register a daddy hundred to have any chance of leapfrogging Padikkal in the pecking order for India’s No.3 slot in Tests, but that didn’t happen. The Karnataka batter stays ahead in the race owing to his Player of the Series effort against Sri Lanka.
How did the play unfold on Day 4?
Australia A resumed the final day at 55/2, and were able to add only 145 runs to their total, folding up for 200. Tushar Deshpande was the main wreaker-in-chief as he capitalised on the low bounce in the pitch. Josh Phillipe and Liam Scott were dismissed off consecutive deliveries, and it seemed that the contest would wrap up in the first session itself.
However, Fergus O Neill and Todd Murphy delayed the inevitable and took the game into the second session. Mulani (3/57, seven in the game) then got the job done as he dismissed all three remaining batters, and India A took a 1-0 lead in the two-match series.
