India A put on a solid show with the bat riding on captain Priyank Panchal’s unbeaten 45, Prithvi Shaw’s 48 and Abhimanyu Easwaran’s 27* to end Day 2 of the first four-day match against South Africa A at 125/1 in Bloemfontein on Wednesday.
After South Africa A posted 509/7d on the board, India A openers – Panchal and Shaw – laid a superb foundation, putting up a brisk 80-run stand. Shaw narrowly missed out on a half-century, his 45-ball 48-run knock, which included nine fours. Panchal was then joined by Easwaran and the two made sure India A continued their good work with the bat. The duo put up an unbroken 45-run stand, denying South Africa A any further success before stumps.
Earlier, South Africa A, who resumed their innings at the overnight score of 343/3, lost two early wickets on Day 2 as India A speedsters Arzan Nagwaswalla and Navdeep Saini dismissed Jason Smith and Pieter Malan respectively. However, South Africa A wicketkeeper Sinethemba Qeshile, who scored an unbeaten 82, and George Linde added 102 runs together.The partnership was broken soon after South Africa A moved past 450 as leg-spinner Rahul Chahar got Linde out for 51. While Marco Jansen scored 17, he was run-out by Shaw before South Africa A declared their innings at 509/7.
Brief Scores: South Africa A 509/7 (Malan 163, de Zorzi 117; Navdeep Saini 2/67, Arzan Nagwaswalla 2/75); India A 125/1 (Prithvi 48, Priyank 45*; Sipamla 1/28).