India A 295 for 6 (Pandey 100, Gill 77, Cornwall 2-37) beat West Indies A 147 (Paul 34, Krunal 5-25) by 148 runs
Three days before the selectors meet to pick India’s senior squad for the Caribbean tour, Manish Pandey, the A team captain, made a statement with an 86-ball century that fashioned a 148-run victory. Opener Shubman Gill also staked his claim for higher honours with his second successive half-century in the West Indies to follow up an unbeaten 109 against Sri Lanka A at home last month. After the two batsmen carried India A to 295 for 6, Krunal Pandya wrecked West Indies A’s chase with 5 for 25 in seven overs. The 148-run win meant India wrapped up the five one-day series with two games remaining.
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After opting to bat, India A lost Anmolpreet Singh for a duck in the third over, but Gill and No.3 Shreyas Iyer forged a 109-run stand to give the innings direction. Iyer, who made a brisk 77 in the tour opener, was more sedate on Tuesday, scoring 47 off 69 balls. The stand ended when Iyer was dismissed by offspin-bowling allrounder Rahkeem Cornwall in the 27th over. Pandey and Gill then took charge of the innings, putting on a 110-run stand to take the team towards 250.
While Gill fell 23 short of a hundred, Pandey reached the landmark off 86 balls, in the last over of the innings. Seamer Romario Shepherd then pinned him lbw with an inswinging yorker off his next ball to keep the visitors to under 300.
With West Indies selector Robert Haynes in attendance, John Campbell and Sunil Ambris have the A team a positive start by adding 51 for the first wicket. Ambris was the more aggressive opener, making 30 off 32 balls before he was trapped lbw by Avesh Khan. However, fingerspinners Krunal, Washington Sundar, and Hanuma Vihari tore up the middle and lower order as West Indies A went from 51 for 0 to 117 for 9.
With No.11 Akeem Jordan for company, Keemo Paul launched some big blows and top-scored with 34 off 16 balls, dragging his side to 147. It was Vihari who sealed the victory when he had Paul holing out in the 35th over. Ambris and Paul were the only West Indies A batsmen to pass 25 in the chase.