Lincoln, Nov 9 (IANS) India A’s preparations for the upcoming Test series against New Zealand suffered a setback as persistent rain wiped out the entire Day 3 play in the third four-day fixture against New Zealand ‘A’ here on Monday, leaving little opportunity for the visitors to get valuable match practice before the senior team’s red-ball assignment begins on November 19.
The washout has pushed the final match of the three-game series towards a draw, with India’s management also missing out on an important opportunity to assess the readiness of several first-choice bowling options, particularly Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Prasidh Krishna.
Bumrah’s return to competitive cricket was among the major talking points of the fixture. The fast bowler had not featured since the Asian Games in early October and was subsequently rested for the white-ball assignments against West Indies and New Zealand. He had spent time preparing in Ahmedabad before completing the prescribed return-to-play programme at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
The second day’s proceedings offered a glimpse of his progress, with Bumrah bowling six overs and conceding just 11 runs, including a maiden. Although he did not pick up a wicket, his economical spell provided an encouraging start to his comeback campaign. The abandoned third day, however, denied him another opportunity to build on that outing.
Jadeja was another key member of India’s Test plans, hoping to benefit from the four-day contest. The all-rounder arrived in New Zealand after featuring in two Ranji Trophy matches for Saurashtra but remained unused with the ball on the second day. With the weather intervening on Monday, he will now have to make the most of whatever opportunity remains on the final day to get some bowling practice.
Prasidh Krishna, meanwhile, made an immediate impression during his first competitive appearance since sustaining a hamstring injury in the second ODI against West Indies on September 30. The right-arm pacer claimed both New Zealand A wickets to fall on the second day, finishing with two wickets from five overs.
Prasidh had originally been included in India’s squad for the ongoing ODI series against New Zealand but was subsequently withdrawn to feature in the red-ball preparatory fixture instead. His performance in Lincoln is particularly relevant, as he remains among the candidates being considered for India’s pace attack in the opening Test.
With the senior Indian side scheduled to begin its two-match Test series against New Zealand on November 19, the remaining hours of the final day could prove important for the visitors. After losing an entire day’s cricket to rain, India A will be keen to squeeze in as much time on the field as possible, especially for the bowlers returning from injury or extended breaks.
However, with Monday’s washout severely limiting the available playing time, the three-match series now appears destined to conclude without a decisive result.
Brief Scores: India A 464/5 dec (Yashasvi Jaiswal 102, Sai Sudharsan 88, Tilak Varma 81 not out, Dhruv Jurel 71, Washington Sundar 50 not out, Zak Gibson 2-73) lead New Zealand A 36/2 (Curtis Heaphy 19, Dean Foxcroft 10; Prasidh Krishna 2-12) by 428 runs.
–IANS
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