Continuing their dominance against the English visitors, India A rode on to yet another magnificent victory on Tuesday to take an assailable 4-0 lead. A 4-wicket haul from Shardul Thakur followed by Rishabh Pant’s blistering 73 handed over a 6-wicket win to the hosts while chasing a 222-run target at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram.
With a revamped playing XI, the Indians maintained their domination right from the beginning. KL Rahul, who joined the squad after the lifting of his ban from the BCCI, played a decent innings of 42 after losing opening partner Ruturaj Gaikwad for a duck. At no.3, Ricky Bhui’s breezy 35 helped the hosts calming the nerves in the middle. Skipper Ankit Bawne was dismissed for a 36-ball 12 and was followed to the dressing room by Rahul, who failed to make good on his start.
But Rishabh Pant took the onus bravely and anchored the innings along with Deepak Hooda. The India A wicketkeeper finished with 73 off 76 with six fours and three sixes while Hooda remained unbeaten on 47 when the chase was polished off in the 47th over.
Earlier, the England Lions looked completely devastated against the hosts. Opting to bat first, the visitors went through a top-order collapse after Shardul Thakur struck twice within 10 overs to remove the opening duo. Rahul Chahar and Avesh Khan chipped-in to dismantle the middle order.
Thakur came back to claim two more wickets at the death to offset the little momentum that the visitors gained through a 63-run stand between half-centurions Ollie Pope (65 off 103) and Steven Mullaney.