India A to play two four-day games against Aus A in lead-up to Border-Gavaskar series
The two matches will take place at Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay from October 31-November 3 followed by the MCG from November 7 to 10.
India’s hopes of starting their Test series against England on a winning note were dashed by inclement weather as the first Test ended in a draw after no play was possible on the fifth and final day due to heavy rains.
The stage was set for an intriguing finale as India had reached 52 for one wicket in their second innings chasing a target of 209 runs. India needed 157 more runs to win the match with nine wickets in hand.
But the weather played spoilsport in a match in which the Indians had done well despite losing out some key players to injuries and held the upper hand.
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The Indians could, however, claim psychological advantage as they definitely would have fancied their chances.
Though they had never successfully chased a target of 200 in the fourth innings of a Test match in England, they would have still fancied their chances as they were in a good position with Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara batting on 12 apiece.
The Indians had shot out England 183 in their first innings with Jasprit Bumrah claiming four wickets for 46 runs and Mohammad Shami bagging three for 28. They then gained a handy 95-run lead thanks to opener K.L. Rahul’s 84 and a fighting fifty by Ravindra Jadeja (56) as well as the tail that wagged.
England could also take some positives from this match, especially skipper Joe Root who struck a fighting 109 to help them reach 303 in their second innings.
Bumrah claimed five wickets for 64 runs in the second innings, once again proving that he would be a thorn in the flesh of the hosts as the two teams battle out in the next four Tests for supremacy.
With the first Test ending in a draw, both India and England got four WTC points each from this match.
The next Test begins on August 12.
England 183 & 303 all out in 85.5 overs (J Root 109, S Curran 32, J Bairstow 30, J Bumrah 5/64, M Siraj 2/84, S Thakur 2/37) vs India 278 & 52/1 (K.L. Rahul 26, S Broad 1/18).
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