India A beat South Africa A to reach tri-series final

Mayank Aggarwal with his 176 has made an impression

South Africa A has lost the number six match in the ongoing Tri-Series at Chennai against India A. South Africa A won the toss and asked India A to bat first, which in the hindsight was not a good decision. The Indian openers Mayank Aggarwal and Unmukt Chand stood their ground for a good 106 runs before Chand was sent back to the pavilion by Keshav Maharaj.

But that did not ruffle Aggarwal as he notched up another 203-run partnership with Manish Pandey. Both the players completed their respective centuries in the process. Aggarwal scored a crucial 176 which helped India to post a towering target (371) for the visitors and Pandey played along scoring a unbeaten 108. For South Africa A, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Maharaj picked one wicket each.

The South Africa A’s innings started confidently with Quinton de Kock taking the lead. He scored an impressive 113, but once he was out, the Indian bowlers led by Axar Patel made short work of the rest of the lineup and South African A could manage only 337 runs in the allotted 50 overs.

With this win, India A is through to finals where they will face Australia A. The final match will be played tomorrow at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai. Axar Patel ended the day with the figures of 3/32, best in the match and picked up the crucial wicket of de Kock.