Christchurch: Captain Dhruv Jurel stood firm with an unbeaten 99 to rescue India A on the opening day of the second unofficial Test against New Zealand A at Hagley Oval on Saturday, steering the visitors to 291 for 7 at stumps after a dramatic middle-order collapse.
India A had started badly and then worse. New Zealand A won the toss and chose to field, and Fraser Sheat struck in the opening over to remove Yashasvi Jaiswal for a four-ball duck. Devdutt Padikkal, who had struck a magnificent 199 in the first unofficial Test at Lincoln, steadied the innings with a fluent 80 off 140 balls, sharing a 91-run second-wicket stand with Sai Sudharsan, who made 41. But when Padikkal fell to Sheat, the innings unravelled: India A lost three wickets for just six runs in the space of six deliveries in the afternoon session and slumped to 160 for 6, with a substantial part of the day still to play.
Jurel, coming into the match after scores of 1 and 2 in the first unofficial Test, responded with a combative, captain’s innings. He first added 62 runs for the seventh wicket with Manav Suthar, who contributed 22, and then, after Suthar’s departure, built an unbroken 69-run eighth-wicket stand with Akash Deep, who was batting on 25 at stumps. Jurel reached the 90s in the 79th over but chose to see out the final nine overs, finishing the day one run short of a century on 99 not out from 155 balls, with 11 fours and three sixes.
Sheat was the pick of the New Zealand A attack, finishing with 4 for 50 from 19 overs, while Randell, McKay and Jayden Lennox picked up a wicket apiece.
The context makes Jurel’s innings more significant still. The first unofficial Test ended in a draw, with India A bowled out for 113 in their first innings before responding with 516 in the second and falling one wicket short of victory as New Zealand A held on at 187 for 9. This second match, running from October 31 to November 3, is the middle fixture of a three-match four-day series that feeds directly into the senior Test series starting November 19 — and for Jurel, who leads the side and is pushing for a Test spot, an unbeaten 99 on day one is exactly the statement innings the tour needed.
Day two resumes with Jurel one run from his hundred and India A looking to push beyond 350.
Read our India A vs New Zealand A series guide here: https://t20star.com/india-a-vs-new-zealand-a-four-day-series-schedule-squads-and-why-this-shadow-tour-matters-for-the-tests/
Brief scores: India A 291/7 (Dhruv Jurel 99*, Devdutt Padikkal 80, Sai Sudharsan 41; Fraser Sheat 4-50) vs New Zealand A.
