England Lions roar but Indians bring their A game as first unofficial Test ends in draw

The first unofficial Test between England Lions and India A concluded in a draw after four days of heavy scoring at the St. Lawrence Ground. The match witnessed several individual performances, from both teams' batters.

India A, batting first posted a big total of 557 runs, with the help from Karun Nair, who scored 204 off 281 deliveries, including 26 fours and a six. He was well-supported with valuable contributions from Sarfaraz Khan (92) and Dhruv Jurel (94), both narrowly missing out on centuries.

England Lions’ bowling attack saw Josh Hull and Zaman Akhter pick up three wickets each, as they were able to bundle the Abhimanyu Easwaran-led side for a decent total on the Day 2 of the game at Canterbury.

[Watch]: Sarfaraz Khan plucks out one-handed screamer

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In reply, the England Lions posted an impressive 587, getting themselves a slim 30-run lead. The opener Tom Haines delivered strongly, scoring 171, narrowly missing his double century. Max Holden (101) and Dan Mousley (113) also notched centuries, which toiled down the Indian pacers for almost a couple of days.

For India A, Mukesh Kumar picked up three wickets, while Shardul Thakur chipped in with a couple of them as well. Part-timer Karun Nair got the better of centurion Mousley to break the shackles for the visitors. Harsh Dubey, the sole specialist spinner in the side too bagged his maiden wicket on his India A debut.

Trailing by 30, the visitors began their second innings positively. The openers Yashasvi Jaiswal (64) and Abhimanyu Easwaran (68) shared a solid 123-run partnership. Later, Dhruv Jurel (53)* and Nitish Kumar Reddy (52)* combined for an unbeaten 91-run stand and took India A to a decent position before the match ended in a draw, as both the captains conveyed their decisions to the umpires, which was followed by a handshake.

The second unofficial Test between England Lions and India A is scheduled to take place from June 6 to June 9 at Northampton. India A will also face the senior India squad in a warm-up match beginning June 13 in Beckenham, ahead of India’s five-match Test series against England, which starts off on June 20.