Vihari led India B's charge with a fine knock after the bowlers restricted India A to a modest 178 in the first innings. Dharmendrasinh Jadeja was the pick of the bowlers, as the Shreyas Iyer - led side walked with an easy win.
20 Overs: India B 136/2
Vihari is playing a gem of an innings at Dharamsala. Suffice to say, India B is within touching distance of victory. And unless there's an inexplicable meltdown, Shreyas Iyer is walking away with the spoils tonight. India B needs 43 runs to win.
OUT! A wicket against the run of play as Easwaran departs and it's Krunal Pandya providing the much-needed breakthrough! India B 111/2.
15 Overs: India B 111/1
Vihari has struck a fifty off just 31 balls while Easwaran, save the three boundaries, has played second fiddle to his partner. This is turning out to be a walk in the park for India B. India A needs wickets, in a heap, to put a break on the scoring.
10 Overs: India B 83/1
A Easwaran has the best seat in the house at the moment - the Bengal batsman also scything three fours off one Saini over - as Vihari continues to toy with the bowlers. Their partnership is now worth 70 off 55 deliveries. If it continues to bleed runs this way, India A could end up conceding the game inside the first 20 overs. Ankit Bawne needs to try something different here; manufacture a wicket from somewhere. India B motoring along at nine runs an over. Shreyas Iyer and his men need another 96 runs to win.
5 Overs: India B 49/1
Srikar Bharat got the chase off to a flying start with a brace of boundaries before chopping on cheaply to Shami. Meanwhile, Andhra skipper Hanuma Vihari has upped the ante, unfurling two back-to-back boundaries off Shami and Saini in consecutive overs to keep India B on track. India A can't afford to leak runs, not when the target on the board is so small. India B going at 9.8 runs an over! And Vihari (34, 18b) is striking them at 179!
Gone! Bharat departs after hitting a flurry of boundaries. Shami has drawn first blood here. Ind B 13/1.
Bhui's rearguard (78, 107b, 4x6, 4x5) has given India A a glimmer of hope here. Kaul and Yadav gave India B the early breakthroughs while Dharmendrasinh Jadeja ran through the middle order with a 4-for. India B needs 179 to win.
Thampi departs for 10; Dharmendrasinh Jadeja picking up his fourth wicket. India A 178/9.
40 Overs: India A 171/8
Bhui's defiant half-century (71*) has pushed India A past the 150-run mark. Basil Thampi, meanwhile, is enjoying himself out there - his two boundaries, albeit streaky, are adding some valuable last minute runs to the overall total. Can Bhui get India A to 200?
35 Overs: India A 135/8
India B continues to run riot with the ball even as Ricky Bhui (47) is stranded at the other end. Bhui showed signs of aggression when he lifted Khaleel Ahmed over long-on for the first six of the match. That was, by far, the best over for India A with 22 coming of it in the end. Nevertheless, it will be lucky if it survives the complete quota of 43 overs. Eight overs left in the innings.
Shami b U Yadav 3(7). Yadav claims one from his own pack; Shami departs for three. India A 133/8.
The end is nigh for India A as Jayant Yadav adds his name to the wickets column; Nadeem departs for six. India A 104/7.
30 Overs: India A 100/6
Two spinners, bowling in tandem, are rushing through the overs at Dharamsala. Bhui needs to up the ante at some point; he has faced over 60 balls now and is quite frankly India A's only hope of getting to a modest total. Shreyas Iyer will be happy with the way his bowlers have bowled so far; they have barely put a foot wrong. 13 overs left in the innings.
Dharamsinh Jadeja continues to have a ball at Dharamsala; Krunal Pandya is out stumped. He ran out of patience there. And suddenly 200 looks a gargantuan task. India A 92/6.
25 Overs: India A 88/5
Suryakumar Yadav was unlucky to be given out; the replays showing a big inside edge which the umpire failed to see. But what a match Dharmendrasinh Jadeja is having with the ball. First Prithvi Shaw and now Yadav - two crucial wickets in as many overs.
Bhui has been joined by Krunal Pandya in the middle. It'll be interesting to see what tactics the elder Pandya adopts, given one more wicket here and India B will be into the opposition tail. Some lusty hits might be around the corner. Seven an over from here will take India A to 214, eight an over to 232. The current run rate is 3.52.
Dharmendrasinh Jadeja's golden arm strikes again! Suryakumar Yadav is out lbw and half the side is now back in the hut. India A 70/5.
20 Overs: India A 69/4
Ricky Bhui and Suryakumar Yadav have an uphill task at hand. Their partnership is worth 27 runs off 48 balls. But with only 23 overs left to play, assuming there are no more rain interruptions - India A might need a change in approach here. As for India B, another wicket and it'll have the Ankit Bawne - led side on the ropes.
That said, India A still has Krunal Pandya in its ranks - the allrounder's ability to use the long handle could come in handy at this stage. Meanwhile, Yadav has already bowled seven overs and Kaul has four more up his sleeve. Dharamsinh, who has only bowled one over so far, might be rolling his arm soon. Last five overs have gone for only 17 runs.
It will be a 43 overs-a-side, three bowlers can bowl maximum of nine overs and two can bowl maximum of eight overs.
Finally, some good news. Rain has stopped and the groundsmen are busy drying the outfield. It shouldn't be long unless of course, the rain gods have a different plan. India B would be hoping that's not the case.
It has been nearly an hour since the players went off and there has been no update yet. For those of you who're just joining us, Shreyas Iyer won the toss and inserted India A in to bat. Siddharth Kaul vindicated his captain's call by picking up two wickets for 22. He was ably supported by Dharmednrasinh Jadeja and Umesh Yadav. India A, led by Ankit Bawne, had limped to 51/4 when the rains came. Prithvi Shaw was the top scorer with 28 off 34 balls.
And it's raining in Dharamsala! The covers are coming on the field, looks like we're going to have a slight delay. India A, given its current situation, would be thanking the rain gods.
14 Overs: India A 51/4
India B captain Shreyas Iyer mixing it up nicely here. Medium pacer Khaleel Ahmed and Kaul operating at either end with left-arm spinner Dharmendrasinh Jadeja slipping in one over in between. Kaul has been impressive so far, grabbing two wickets for 22. As for India A, the onus will be on the experienced Suryakumar Yadav and Ricky Bhui, who is no stranger to such a collapse ( Bhui had recently steered Andhra home in a jittery chase in a Vijay Hazare encounter against Goa), to steady the ship. That said, going into a shell might not be a very good idea either. The time is opportune for the ones and twos.
Kaul gets another one and this time, it's the skipper who has to take the long walk back to the dressing room. Bawne is trapped in front for five and India B is in the driver's seat at the moment. India A 42/4.
10 Overs: India A 37/3
Three quick wickets have stalled India A's charge; Shaw's wicket being the highlight off the last five overs - Dharmendrasinh Jadeja struck with the fourth ball off his first over.The pace duo of Yadav and Kaul have kept the opposition batters under check - only 16 coming off the last five overs with the prized wicket of the India U-19 skipper.
Prithvi Shaw departs! Dharmendrasinh Jadeja strikes in his first over to put the opposition in a spot of bother. Shaw departs for 28. India A 37/3.
5 Overs: India A 21/2
Shaw making his intentions clear with two delightful strokes off Siddharth Kaul - one between mid-off and cover and the other; a wristy flick. However, India B made early inroads when Ishan Kishan was out caught off Kaul and Shubman Gill followed suit for a paltry score of five; Yadav getting his first wicket of the match. It is a good chance for the Nagpur pacer - who last played an ODI for India in September 2017 against Australia - to shrugg off the rustiness and get some game time under his belt. Prithvi Shaw and skipper Ankit Bawne at the crease. India A going at nearly four runs an over.
And another one bites the dust! U-19 World Cup star Shubman Gill fails to deliver; Umesh Yadav snapping up his first wicket. Gill departs for five. India A 21/2.
Gone! Kaul draws first blood; Ishan Kishan departs for two. India A 16/1.
Prithvi Shaw and Ishan Kishan to open the innings. Umesh Yadav will start proceedings with the new ball.
TOSS UPDATE: India B has won the toss and elected to field first.
Hello and welcome to Sportstar's live coverage of the Deodhar Trophy.
India A will lock horns with India B at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala. India international Shreyas Iyer will spearhead the India B team whereas Maharashtra player Ankit Bawne has been handed the reins of India A. He replaces Ravichandran Ashwin who was ruled out due to injury concern.
Here's our preview for today's match: Deodhar Trophy: Players upbeat with one eye on India cap
Comments
SHARE