India secure six-wicket win over Prime Minister’s XI in warm-up clash
The warm-up game between the Prime Minister’s XI and India, saw the visitors clinch a crucial win ahead of the second Test against Australia in Adelaide. After Day 1 of the game was washed out due to the rain, the officials declared it as a 50-over game set to be played on December 01 at Manuka Oval in Canberra.
The match began with Rohit Sharma calling it correctly at the toss and electing to field first. The PM XI’s innings began with Mohammed Siraj drawing the first blood early in the game in the form of Matt Renshaw’s dismissal. Following that, Jayden Goodwin also departed early after adding just four runs to the score tally. From there on Jack Clayton and opener Sam Konstas stitched a solid 109-run partnership in 100 deliveries.
While, Clayton walked back after a 52-ball 40, but his partner went on to smash an impressive century. Konstas in his 107-run inning, smashed 14 boundaries and one six and played at a 110.30 strike rate. Meanwhile, Harshit Rana wreaked havoc in the middle overs, as he took four crucial wickets in no time, dismissing, Clayton, Oliver Davies, Jack Edwards, and Sam Harper.
With wickets falling from one end, Hanno Jacobs kept his cool from the other and played a flourish knock toward the end of the innings. His 60-ball 61, included four boundaries and two towering sixes. The strong Indian bowling attack eventually dismantled the opposition for 240 runs in 43.2 overs. For India, Rana claimed a four-fer, along with Akash Deep taking two wickets. Meanwhile, Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ravindra Jadeja, and Washington Sundar took a wicket each.
In reply, KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal walked into bat in pursuit to give the tourists a solid start. Both the batters started cautiously and gave the Pink ball respect in the initial overs without attempting any fancy shots. The young Jaiswal played some elegant shots but couldn’t convert them to a big score as he found himself in the dressing room after a 59-ball 45.
On the other hand, Rahul was unbeaten and retired not out after adding 27 runs. For India, the good news was the return of Shubman Gill, who suffered a fracture in his right hand ahead of the first Test. The Punjab-born made a resounding comeback with a fifty, lacing his innings with seven boundaries, and looked in no discomfort throughout his time in the middle. Meanwhile, skipper Rohit Sharma had a disappointing day with the bat, as he was caught in slips after a brief 3-run stay.
Furthermore, Nitish Kumar Reddy played a fine knock and was on his way to scoring a sublime fifty, but fell short by eight runs after being dismissed by Lloyd Pope. Sundar and Jadeja also contributed brilliantly with the bat, as they found the gaps consistently and took India to a good win ahead of the Pink Ball Test. The Men in Blue won the game by six wickets and 19 balls to spare. In the end, India’s score stood at 257 for the loss of five, with Devdutt Padikkal (4) and Washington Sundar (42) returning to the dressing room unbeaten.
India will now be up against Australia for the Day-Night Test at the Adelaide Oval, which is slated to begin on December 06, and is going to be a Pink Ball affair.
