India A climbed to the top spot in the points table of the ongoing Quadrangular series in Australia featuring the ‘A’ sides of Australia and South Africa as well as Australia’s ational Performance Squad after their match with South Africa A was washed out with Manish Pandey’s side batting for 35.2 overs before rain came pouring down evetually forcing the match to be called off.
Both teams earned two pints each thus helping India A climb over NPS to the top spot with 11 points. All the teams have played four games each with India A enjoying a one-point lead at the top at present.
It has been a remarkable turnaround for Rahul Dravid’s men who got their tournament off to the worst possible start after being bundled out for 55 in their opening match against Australia A. Following victories over South Africa A and NPS, India A had got their tournament back on track and were hoping to beat the Proteas second time around as well in their meeting at Harrup Park in Mackay but it was the opposition who made the better start here on Thursday.
Sent in to bat after losing the toss, India A made a cautious start with the opening pair of Mandeep Singh and Karun Nair taking their time to settle down. The dismissals of Nair and Shreyas Iyer in quick succession forced India A to consolidate further but Mandeep undid all the hard work done by him after being dismissed for a 51-ball 29.
Skipper Manish Pandey, however, found support from Kedhar Jadhav as the duo set about building a good partnership. The pair eventually put on 70 runs for the fourth wicket before Pandey was dismissed for 47 by right-arm fast bowler Andile Phehlukwayo who was the pick of the bowlers for South Africa conceding only 23 runs in his seven overs while also claiming the wicket of Iyer.
Sanju Samson joined Jadhav at the crease but could only face four deliveries before rain interrupted proceedings in the 36th over fot the India A innings and eventually forced the match to be abandoned without any further action. India A will next take on NPS on Saturday while South Africa A will come up against Australia A in their next match on Sunday.
Brief scores: India A 140/4 after 35.2 overs (Manish Pandey 47, Kedhar Jadhav 41*)
Result: Match abandoned due to rain
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