Ruturaj Gaikwad played an outstanding innings of 117 runs off 129 balls as India A chased down a target of 286 to beat South Africa A by four wickets in the first unofficial One-Day match on Thursday. With the main Indian players from the ODI and T20 squads not part of the match Gaikwad took charge and anchored the run chase for his team with great composure. His innings was steady and confident helping India A stay on course throughout the match.
How did South Africa A bat?
South Africa A had made a total of 285 for 9 in their 50 overs. They started poorly losing five wickets for just 53 runs by the 12th over which put them under pressure early in the innings. Left-arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh gave India A an excellent start by dismissing the openers Rubin Hermann and Rivaldo Moonsamy. Prasidh Krishna also contributed by taking the wicket of the South Africa A captain Marques Ackerman which further increased the pressure on the visiting side.

The South Africa A lower-order batters however put up a strong fight to give their team a decent total. Dian Forrester made 77 runs Delano Potgieter scored 90 and Bjorn Fortuin contributed 59 runs. Their partnerships helped the team bounce back from a poor start and set a tough target for India A.
How was Indias batting performance?
In response Gaikwad opened the innings with T20 star Abhishek Sharma who scored 31 runs off 25 balls. The pair added 64 runs for the first wicket giving India A a strong foundation. Riyan Parag scored only 8 runs and captain Tilak Varma managed 39 runs which was not enough to keep the momentum going. In the later stages Nitish Kumar Reddy scored 37 off 26 balls and Nishant Sindhu remained not out on 29 off 26 balls. Their partnership was crucial as it helped India A complete the chase in 49.3 overs.

Even though India A lost Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan in quick succession Reddy and Sindhu ensured that there were no more setbacks finishing the match comfortably. Nitish Kumar Reddy had just been released from the India Test squad on Wednesday so that he could participate in this A series and he made the most of the opportunity by playing a match-winning role. Overall it was a strong team effort but Gaikwad’s brilliant century was the highlight of the game.