India ‘A’ beat England Lions by innings and 16 runs

A fine all-round performance powered India ‘A’ to an innings and 16-run win over England Lions in the second ‘unofficial Test’ here on Saturday.

The win also helped the hosts take an unassailable 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The hosts dismissed England Lions for 321 in their second innings with Arshdeep Singh (2/62) and Yash Dayal (1/37) claiming the wickets of overnight batters Ollie Robinson (85) and Tom Lawes (32) respectively to complete the win.

Starting the day at 304/8, England Lions’ resistance lasted just 5.2 overs as Arshdeep had Robinson caught by wicketkeeper Upendra Yadav in the 88th over.

Lawes added 14 runs to his overnight score of 18 before Dayal got rid of him with Akash Deep taking the catch.

Sarfaraz Khan was adjudged the Player of the Match for his 161-run knock which steered India ‘A’ to 489 in their first innings. Devdutt Padikkal too flourished with the bat, making 105.

Left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar was the other star performer as he claimed his 22nd five-wicket haul to put India ‘A’ on the cusp of the win. Akash Deep snapped six wickets in total to contribute to the team’s cause.

The first unofficial Test ended in a draw.

The two teams will face off in the third and final match starting February 1.

Brief Scores: England Lions 152 and 321 allout in 90.2 overs (Ollie Robinson 85, Tom Lawes 32; Saurabh Kumar 5/104, Akash Deep 2/57).

India A: 489 in 111.1 overs.