Pacer Prasidh Krishna, young batter Pradosh Ranjan Paul and all-rounder Shardul Thakur struck the right notes as India A played out a draw with South Africa A.
Krishna scaled a five-fer while spilling away 43 runs in his 18.1 over spell. The 27-year-old has made a bold statement with his performance ahead of India's two-match Test series against South Africa. If Mohammed Shami is not fit in time from his lingering knee niggle, Krishna could emerge as the forerunner for his place. Prasidh's five-wicket haul was his third in first-class cricket and his pace triggered a lower-order collapse. From a strong position of 239/4, the Proteas succumbed to 319 at the end of the third day. Prasidh's five-fer included a hat-trick and came in a span of two overs. Vidwath Kaverappa picked up one wicket each, while left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar returned with figures of 3-83 in 26 overs. Jean du Plessis's 106 and Rubin Hermann's 95 propelled South Africa to put up 319 runs on the board. Tamil Nadu's highest run-getter at the 2022-23 Ranji season, Pradosh led the charge with the bat for the Indian team. During his time at the pitch, he put together two-century stands with Sarfaraz Khan (68) and Shardul (76) to power India to a score of 417. Allrounder Evan Jones scalped four with his pace and became the leading wicket-taker for South Africa in the match. The first day got washed out and four-day match resulted in a draw. Brief Score: South Africa A 319 (Jean du Plessis 106, Hermann 95, Prasidh 5-43, Saurabh 3-83) & 152/2 (Valli 72*, du Plessis 50*) vs India A 419 (Paul 163, Shardul 76, Sarfaraz 68, Jones 4-100, Plaatjie 3-65). (ANI)
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