On a rain-curtailed Day 2 of the second unofficial Test between India A and Australia A at the iconic MCG, the talk of the town was the failure of Abhimanyu Easwaran and KL Rahul. The duo failed to take advantage of their chances as possible substitutes for Rohit Sharma’s opening spot in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT).
The two seasoned players struggled, but wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel showed his mettle once more by going undefeated on 19 as India A reached stumps at 76/5, barely 11 runs ahead of Australia A.
Marcus Harris nails down his case to open at BGT
Despite the early setbacks, Marcus Harris’ gritty 74 laid the platform for Australia A’s fightback. Prasidh Krishna’s four-wicket haul triggered a middle-order collapse for the hosts, but a crucial last-wicket stand between Corey Rocchiccioli and Nathan McAndrew ultimately helped Australia A secure a slender 62-run lead in the first innings.
Harris, particularly, stood out on the back of his superb show. He contained the Indian pace attack delightfully and is now the prime candidate to open along side Usman Khawaja at the BGT. With him top-scoring, Australia A made 223.
KL Rahul, Easwaran fail to prove a point
In their second innings, India A’s top order once again struggled to make an impact. Opener Abhimanyu Easwaran was the first to depart, followed by the quick dismissals of Sai Sudharsan and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad. KL Rahul’s woes continued as he was cleaned up by Rocchiccioli for 10. His dismissal was potentially the highlight of the day as he left a simple delivery and saw the ball go between his legs and onto the furniture!
Devdutt Padikkal also fell cheaply, leaving India A reeling at 47 for 5. However, Dhruv Jurel’s unbeaten 19 helped the visitors get a slender lead of 11 runs by the end of the day’s play.
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Prasidh Krishna makes a strong point!
Despite the rain interruptions, Prasidh Krishna made the most of his opportunities, picking up a four-wicket haul for India A. His strikes at crucial junctures kept the visitors in the hunt, but the tailend resistance from Australia A ultimately proved decisive in the first innings. Regardless, Krishna did superbly. He is part of the Indian pace attack and could prove to be a X-factor Down Under. His height can make it awkward for the Aussie batting lineup.
Australia A vs India A Day 2 2nd Unofficial Test Brief Scores:
India A 161 & 73/5 (Dhruv Jurel 19*; Beau Webster 2-14, Nathan Mcandrew 2-22) lead Australia A 223 (Marcus Harris 74, Corey Rocchiccioli 35; Prasidh Krishna 4-50, Mukesh Kumar 3-41) by 11 runs.
