Dhruv Jurel leads India A fightback against NZ A in Christchurch

Dhruv Jurel, India A’s captain, finished day 1 of the second unofficial Test against New Zealand A unbeaten on 99 as India A recovered to 291/7 at Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Saturday, 31 October.

Jurel, who is also the wicketkeeper, leads the side in this second four-day game of the tour, which runs until 3 November.

How the day unfolded

India A were put in to bat and lost Yashasvi Jaiswal for a duck to Fraser Sheat in the opening over. Devdutt Padikkal and Sai Sudharsan then added 91 for the second wicket, before Sai Sudharsan fell to Jarrod McKay for 41 off 63 balls.

Padikkal made 80 off 127 balls with 12 boundaries. His dismissal started a collapse in which India A lost three wickets for six runs and slipped to 137/5.

Jurel added 62 for the seventh wicket with Manav Suthar, who made 22, and then batted on with Akash Deep, who is unbeaten on 25. Jurel’s 99 so far includes 11 fours and three sixes. Sheat was the pick of the New Zealand A bowlers with four wickets, including Padikkal and Smaran Ravichandran, while Brett Randell, Jayden Lennox and McKay took one each.

Jurel’s tour so far

Jurel had scored one and two in the first four-day game, PTI’s preview noted. That match ended in a draw: India A were bowled out for 113 in 39.3 overs in the first innings, Padikkal made 199 in the second as they posted 516 and set New Zealand A a target of 313, and the hosts held on, with bad light and their batting stopping India A from taking the final wicket. Auqib Nabi led the bowling there with six wickets, three in each innings.

What’s next

Mohammed Siraj has joined the India A squad for this second four-day game, according to a BCCI statement.

The third and final four-day game is in Lincoln, starting on 7 November. Nitish Kumar Reddy will join India A for it after the first ODI, and Prasidh Krishna will also join if he clears his Return to Play assessment. The two-Test series against New Zealand starts on 19 November.