Spinners guide India B to victory over India A in Deodhar Trophy
Chasing 262, India A lost half their side under 100 before Dinesh Karthik and Ravichandran Ashwin (54) led their resurgence. But it wasn’t enough as leg-spinner Mayank Markande (4/48) and slow left-arm bowler Shahbaz Nadeem (3/32) helped India B put one foot into the final.
Dinesh Karthik’s 99 and Ravichandran Ashwin’s all-round show went in vain as India B defeated India A by 43 runs in the opening game of the Deodhar Trophy at the Feroz Shah Kotla here on Tuesday.
Chasing 262, India A lost half their side under 100 before Karthik and Ashwin (54) led their resurgence. But it wasn’t enough as leg-spinner Mayank Markande (4/48) and slow left-arm bowler Shahbaz Nadeem (3/32) helped India B put one foot into the final.
Earlier, it was Hanuma Vihari’s unbeaten 87 and Manoj Tiwary’s 52 that saved India B the blushes.
Failing to convert starts
India B openers Mayank Agarwal (46) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (2) added 28 runs for the first wicket before fast bowler Mohammed Siraj got the better of the latter in the sixth over. Gaikwad looked to drive a good length delivery outside the off stump, but got an outside edge and Nair did the rest at first slip.
Agarwal, who was handed a lifeline early on when Shaw dropped him at point, stitched a 59-run stand with skipper Shreyas Iyer (41) for the second wicket before misjudging an arm ball from Krunal Pandya which deflected on to his stumps. Iyer too threw away a good start, falling to Ashwin, who struck in his first over.
Vihari, who made his India debut in England this year, combined with Tiwary to provide resistance. The duo’s 99-run partnership for the fourth wicket was cut short by a misjudged run which resulted in the Bengal captain’s departure.
Vihari anchored India B’s innings but couldn’t get the support needed for the final flourish. India A bowlers did a good job on a good batting track as all their bowlers were among the wickets with Ashwin (2/39) being the pick. India B finally managed 261/8.
Karthik, Ashwin show
In reply, India A opener Prithvi Shaw (7), who hurt his elbow early in the innings, became Man-of-the-Match Nadeem’s first victim. The slow left-arm bowler was on a hat-trick when he caught No 3 Karun Nair (0) in front of the wickets but couldn’t achieve the feat.
Opener Anmolpreet Singh (16), Ankeet Bawne (3) and Krunal Pandya (17) also couldn’t do much as India B were left reeling at 87/5 with more than 30 overs to go.
Karthik, who survived a close LBW call, and Ashwin then stabilised the innings — adding 123 runs for the sixth wicket. The duo looked set to take India B to victory but both fell in the space of 11 balls.
While Markande had Ashwin stumped, Karthik drove one straight back to Nadeem, who dived towards his left to complete an excellent catch. Eventually, India A were bowled out for 218 in 46.4 overs.
India C in action
India B will face India C in the second game of the tournament on Wednesday.
India C captain Ajinkya Rahane was confident about his team’s chances. “Whenever I play domestic cricket, it’s all about ‘come out there and play with the same intensity with which you play international cricket’. We have got good fast bowlers, especially (Navdeep) Saini and (Rajneesh) Gurbani. I’m hopeful of an impressive show,” he said.
