India A tightened their grip on the third unofficial Test against New Zealand A on Sunday, declaring their first innings on 464 for 5 at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln before reducing the hosts to 36 for 2 at stumps on Day 2. The visitors lead by 428 runs with two days remaining in a match they must win to take the series, after the first two unofficial Tests ended in draws.
Resuming on 227 for 2, India A built on the foundation laid by Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had struck 102 on the opening day. Captain Dhruv Jurel led from the front with a fluent 71 off 95 balls, an innings that included nine fours and two sixes, bringing up his half-century off 75 deliveries. It was Jurel’s second successive fifty-plus score in the series, after his 105 in the first innings of the second unofficial Test in Christchurch.
Jurel added 66 runs for the third wicket with Sai Sudharsan, who fell 12 runs short of a century when Zak Gibson cleaned him up for 88 off 255 balls. Jurel himself eventually fell to a mistimed pull, caught at deep backward square leg, but by then India A were firmly in control of the contest.
Ravindra Jadeja, playing competitive cricket on this tour, contributed a patient 25 off 71 balls in a 44-run stand with Tilak Varma, before edging Gibson to first slip. Tilak and Washington Sundar then took complete charge, stitching an unbeaten 114-run stand for the sixth wicket. Tilak finished on 81 not out, Washington on 50 not out, and India A declared with around an hour of play left in the day, having batted for 146 overs.
New Zealand A’s reply began badly. Prasidh Krishna, returning to competitive cricket after recovering from a left hamstring injury, struck twice with the new ball, bowling Rhys Mariu for a duck and trapping Curtis Heaphy leg-before for 19. Dean Foxcroft and Zak Gibson survived the last 26 balls of the day to take the hosts to stumps on 36 for 2, still 428 runs behind.
The match is also a final audition before the senior Test series. Jurel, Jadeja and Jaiswal are all part of India’s Test squad for the two-match series against New Zealand, which begins in Wellington on November 19. For India A, the task on Day 3 is clear: take eight more wickets and force a result after two drawn games.
Brief scores: India A 464/5 decl. (Yashasvi Jaiswal 102, Sai Sudharsan 88, Tilak Varma 81*, Dhruv Jurel 71, Washington Sundar 50*; Zak Gibson 2-73) lead New Zealand A 36/2 (Prasidh Krishna 2-12) by 428 runs.
Related: Yashasvi Jaiswal Smashes Back-to-Back Centuries for India A With 102 in Lincoln
Related: India Edge New Zealand by Four Runs on DLS After Rain Ends Wellington ODI
