India A bag consolation win as Australia A take series 2-1

Brief Scores: India A 275 (Suryansh Shedge 66, Priyansh Arya 49, Vipraj Nigam 40, Ben Dwarshuis 3-38, Will Sutherland 3-44) beat Australia A 226 (Josh Philippe 56, Nathan McSweeney 39, Gurjapneet Singh 3-56) by 49 runs

India A rounded off the unofficial ODI series with a 49-run victory over Australia A in the third and final match, though the result came too late to alter the outcome. Australia A had already secured the series by winning the first two games and finished as 2-1 winners. India A posted 275 and then bowled the tourists out for 226 to end on a high.

Suryansh Shedge’s 66 and a three-wicket haul from Gurjapneet Singh were the defining contributions for the hosts. Vipraj Nigam earned the Player of the Match award for his rescue innings and the key dismissal of Josh Philippe, while Nathan McSweeney was recognised as Player of the Series for his run-scoring consistency across all three games.

How did India A recover from 159 for 6 to post 275?

Sent in to bat, India A were given a flying start by Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh. The pair, who also open together for Punjab Kings in the IPL, put on 82 runs inside the first ten overs. Their partnership came after the team management moved B Sai Sudharsan and Devdutt Padikkal out of the top-order slots for this match.

Liam Scott, introduced as second change, ended the stand after the powerplay by removing Prabhsimran, who made 39 off 34 balls. Padikkal, batting at number three, had a short stay, and Arya was then dismissed for 49 when he edged Ben Dwarshuis to the keeper. The innings lost its way badly from there, with India A tumbling to 159 for 6 from a position of 106 for 2, a collapse that reflected a batting fragility that had been visible throughout the series.

Shedge and Nigam arrested the slide with an 85-run seventh-wicket stand. Shedge brought up his fifty off 47 deliveries and went on to make 66 off 60 balls, striking seven fours and two sixes. Nigam, a leg-spin bowling allrounder, contributed a measured 40 off 44 balls before Will Sutherland ended his innings. The partnership lifted India A to a competitive total of 275, rescuing what had looked like a below-par effort after the middle-order collapse.

How did Australia A’s chase collapse after a promising opening?

Australia A’s openers Philippe and Scott set the chase alight, putting on 82 runs and scoring 61 of those in the first ten overs alone. The platform looked solid until Nigam trapped Philippe lbw for 56. In the very next over, Nishant Sindhu had Scott caught behind, and the complexion of the chase changed immediately.

Lachlan Shaw and McSweeney steadied things for a period and kept Australia A in contention. However, Gurjapneet broke the partnership by having McSweeney, the series’ leading run-scorer, caught behind by Kumar Kushagra, who was keeping wicket as a substitute for Prabhsimran. That dismissal triggered a dramatic collapse: Australia A lost their last seven wickets for just 49 runs as the required rate climbed beyond reach. The tourists were eventually dismissed for 226, handing India A a 49-run win. Gurjapneet claimed three wickets in total, with Sindhu and Yash Thakur also chipping in to complete the bowling effort.