After bowling out India A for 161 on the opening day, Australia A managed 223, not a total the home team had hoped for, but it still gave them a substantial first-innings lead of 62 runs.
Earlier, India A’s pace attack, spearheaded by Prasidh Krishna’s four-wicket burst and Mukesh Kumar’s three-wicket haul, dominated the Australian batting, dismissing them for 223 in 62.1 overs.
Marcus Harris was the standout batter for Australia A, scoring a gritty 74 off 138 balls, while lower-order batter Rocchiccioli provided late fireworks, hitting 35 off 28 balls, including two sixes and three fours.
In response, India A lost openers Abhimanyu and Sai Sudharsan cheaply to disciplined bowling from Nathan McAndrew and Beau Webster. Abhimanyu’s misreading of McAndrew’s pace led to his dismissal at gully, adding to the team’s concerns.
Devdutt Padikkal (1) also fell cheaply, as both Webster (2/14) and McAndrew (2/22) tore through India’s batting lineup. However, Jurel and Reddy then held firm.
Resuming the day on 53/2, Harris translated his overnight score of 26 into a well-constructed innings, showing resilience against a sharp Indian pace attack.
Brief Scores: India A 161 and 73/5 in 31 overs (Dhruv Jurel 19 batting; Nathan McAndrew 2/22, Beau Webster 2/14).
Australia A 1st innings: 223 all out in 62.1 (Marcus Harris 74; Prasidh Krishna 4/50, Mukesh Kumar 3/41, Khaleel Ahmed 2/56).
