5 best performers from India 'A' - South Africa 'A' Test series

Even as the senior Indian team found it hard to cope up with the conditions on offer in England, closer to home the 'A' side completed a 1-0 win against South Africa 'A' in the two-match unofficial test series that was played in the past fortnight in Bengaluru.

After winning the opening game, the Shreyas Iyer-led side drew the second game, finishing with 181 for 4 in their second innings, after bowling out the visitors for 319 in their first innings to take a 36-run lead.

There were some impressive performers from many of the Indian players in the series, both with bat and ball who can now stake a claim to feature in the senior setup at some point in the next few months.

Here are five players who performed the best in the series:

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#1 Prithvi Shaw

The right-hander had a good outing with the bat in hand, amassing 156 runs in the two matches at an average of 52. His batting was in full flow during the first game at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, where he made 136 in a mammoth stand with his fellow opener Mayank Agarwal.

There has been a lot of talk about the Indian opening combination in the longer format of the game and whether the available options are the ones to go ahead with for future tours. If Shaw does continue to score runs in the upcoming 'A' tours, then maybe for the year-ending Australia tour, he could be in contention for a spot as a backup opener.

#2 Rajneesh Gurbani

Gurbani has had a good time with the ball in the last few months

The star for Vidarbha in their triumphant Ranji Trophy season earlier this year, Rajneesh Gurbani did not the field alight in the series, but with four wickets in the two matches, the pacer proved to be a handy support for the real star - Mohammed Siraj - along with Navdeep Saini.

Gurbani has had an excellent last 10-12 months with the ball and it remains to be seen if he carries this form into the upcoming season as well, as Vidarbha look to defend the crown they won this year.

#3 Hanuma Vihari

Vihari will want to keep his good form going

It hasn't been the case in the last few years that a player from Andhra has made the headlines for his exploits with either bat or ball. And so the batting form shown by Hanuma Vihari should come as a breath of fresh air for the cricket supporting community in the state.

The right-hander had an excellent time with the willow in hand during the two-match series, scoring 202 runs in the two matches at an average of 67.33 that included a score of 148 and he will look to carry this form into the upcoming series as well.

#4 Mayank Agarwal

Agarwal will want to keep this form with the bat going

Prolific. That's the first word one would use to describe the purple patch which Mayank Agarwal finds himself in with the bat in hand.

The right-hander, who has featured constantly in the India 'A' scheme of things in the last few series, had yet another fine outing with the bat, finishing as the leading run-getter among both teams with 248 runs in two matches with a best of 220.

The Indian middle-order right now is in search of a Number 4 and while Agarwal may not have batted there a lot, perhaps with more such consistent scores under his belt, he could be tested there during the home season.

#5 Mohammed Siraj

Siraj was exceptional for India 'A' in the series

The standout fast bowler among both teams, Siraj finished the series with 14 wickets to his name at an average of 14.35 and impressed one-and-all during the course of the series, with his bowling exploits.

What stands out is what Rahul Dravid revealed about him in one of the press conferences which was that he hadn't played a lot of red-ball cricket in his junior days and so, this exposure wasn't entirely the most comfortable for him.

And yet, he delivered and how, Hopefully, this is the start of something big for him in the longest format of the game.