West Indies A bowlers picked up three late wickets to bounce back against India A on the second day of the third unofficial Test in Trinidad. India A were reduced to 23/3 at stumps and the hosts now have a good chance of winning the final game after losing the first two.
India A took a seven-run lead in the first innings after K Gowtham wreaked havoc and picked up six wickets to bowl West Indies A out for 194 in response to India A’s 201.
Resuming at 23/1, West Indies A were rocked early in the day by pacer Umesh Yadav who removed Akim Frazer legbefore for just 1. In the same spell, Umesh then got rid of Brandon King to reduce West Indies A to 36/3.
Opener Jeremy Solozano held up one end cautiously and built a partnership with Sunil Ambris who has been impressive throughout the series. The two added 66 runs from the fourth wicket before Shivam Dube broke the stand by removing Ambris.
Jermaine Blackwood played a small cameo, moving to 22 off just 18 balls with three fours to put West Indies A on path to take lead against India A. But Gowtham had different ideas.
The left-arm spinner, who had picked up a wicket on the first day, ran through the middle-order before wrapping up the tail. The last six West Indies A wickets fell for 60 runs and Gowtham picked up five of them. All the five wickets showed how accurate Gowtham’s bowling was as he had three batsmen bowled, one LBW and one caught-behind.
Avesh Khan got the other wickets as West Inides A finished at 194 with opener Solozano carrying his bat to remain unbeaten on 69.
But if India A thought they had the match under their control, West Indies A pacers were quick to remove such thoughts. Chemar Holder troubled the batsmen like in the first innings and was rewarded with the wickets of both Indian openers.
Priyank Panchal and Abhimanyu Easwaran were adjudged leg-before wicket to Holder. Both fell in single-digit scores. Miguel Cummins added one more wicket late in the day by removing Mayank Agarwal for just 5.
At stumps, nightwatchman Shahbaz Nadeem was with Shubman Gill, who will like to bat on a fresh day and bail out India and complete a 3-0 sweep of the series.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!