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Siraj, Akash Deep and Kuldeep’s flop show hauntingly echoes New Zealand humiliation as South Africa A script 417 chase
Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep and Kuldeep Yadav failed with the ball as South Africa A pulled off a stunning 417-run chase.
Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, and Kuldeep Yadav's preparation for the two-match Test series against South Africa did not have an ideal end, as the trio looked far from their best leading to South Africa A pulling off a stunning 417 run chase with five wickets in hand in the second unofficial Test against India A at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 1 in Bengaluru on Sunday. Siraj, Kuldeep and Akash Deep are expected to play the headline act in the upcoming series against the Proteas, but they were only able to take two wickets between themselves in the second innings as the visitors got the job done in a canter.
South Africa A, led by Marques Ackerman, chased down the target of 417 in 98 overs with Connor Esterhuizen and Tiaan van Vuuren, unbeaten on 52 and 20, respectively. For India A, Prasidh Krishna was the pick of the bowlers as he returned with two wickets. For South Africa A, Jordan Hermann (91), Zubayr Hamza (77) and Temba Bavuma (59) returned with fifties, setting up the famous win.
In the second innings, Siraj and Akash Deep dished out 17 and 22 overs respectively, while Kuldeep bowled 17 overs. Akash Deep was the costliest of all bowlers as he gave away 106 runs, while Siraj and Kuldeep leaked 53 and 81 runs respectively.
In the first innings, Siraj and Akash Deep had scalped two wickets each, while Kuldeep picked up just one wicket.
Bavuma was also a part of the South Africa A team for the second Test, and he returned with a half-century in the second innings after falling for a duck in the first innings.
It is worth mentioning that Kuldeep was specially asked to play the second unofficial Test against South Africa A, as he was sent back home midway through the T20I series against Australia.
Also Read: Dhruv Jurel hits back-to-back centuries for India A as pressure piles on Sai Sudharsan ahead of South Africa Tests
The trio of Siraj, Kuldeep and Akash Deep hadn't played the first unofficial Test against South Africa A, which India A won by three wickets.
Jurel impresses while KL Rahul and Sai Sudharsan flop
The second unofficial Test saw Dhruv Jurel making a strong case for himself to be included in the playing XI for the first match against the Proteas as a frontline batter. The right-hander smashed centuries in both innings as he remained unbeaten on both occasions, returning with scores of 132 and 127.
On the other hand, Sai Sudharsan and KL Rahul failed to get going as the duo got starts but were unable to convert them into big ones. With Sudharsan not making the most of his chances against England and the West Indies, the pressure is piling on the youngster, and there is a case for trying out Dhruv Jurel at No.3.
The unofficial Test series also saw Rishabh Pant making a comeback from the injury he sustained during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against England in Manchester. The second game saw Pant score 24 and 65.
The second innings of the second Test saw Pant being hit on the body thrice, but after a brief while on the sidelines, the left-hander made his way back, unleashing some big shots as he put all injury concerns to rest.
Pant, Rahul, Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Jurel, Siraj, Kuldeep, and Akash Deep are all part of the Indian squad for the series against South Africa, and these seven players represented India A in the second unofficial game.
Padikkal also struggled to get going with the bat, returning scores of 5 and 24. Even in the first game, he flopped, scoring a total of 11 runs (6, 5).
