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India’s sensational T20 finisher is struggling to get off the mark in red-ball cricket. Picked in India A side against England Lions, Rinku Singh registered another duck. In the third unofficial Test of the series, the hosts were bowled out for 192 on Day 1 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. For England Lions, Matthew Potts turned out to be the standout bowler with a six-wicket haul.
Potts wreaks havoc
After winning the toss, England Lions skipper Josh Bohannon won the toss and opted to field first. Potts struck with the first ball of the match trapping India A skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran in front of the stumps. A few overs later, he did the same to Sai Sudharsan who scored seven runs from 21 balls. In-form Devdutt Padikkal and Tilak Varma played out the new ball. Potts broke the partnership in the 18th over. Varma scored 22 runs from 51 balls before getting caught behind. A few overs later, Rinku got out lbw to Potts for a five-ball duck.
In the next over, Brydon Carse joined the party. The pacer got the wicket of wicketkeeper-batter Kumar Kushagra for a single-digit score. From 82/5, Padikkal and Saransh Jain helped India A recover. They shared a 70-run partnership for the sixth wicket. Potts came back into the attack to dismiss Padikkal. He scored 65 runs from 96 balls including 11 fours. Jain reached his half-century as well and became Carse's second victim of the day. He scored 64 runs from 82 balls including 12 fours.
After the two half-centurions departed, Carse struck twice to dismiss Shams Mulani and Arshdeep Singh. Potts took another wicket as India were bowled out for 192 in 50.2 overs.
Big players missing
In the previous game, Sarfaraz Khan scored 161 whereas Washington Sundar and Saurabh Kumar scored half-centuries. The trio was added to the squad for the second Test after KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja due to their respective injuries.
However, Jain was added to India A’s squad for the final game of the series.
After an exceptional bowling display in the first innings, the England Lions have a chance to level the three-match series. The first match ended in a draw whereas the hosts won the second game by an innings and 16 runs.
Solid reply from England Lions
In reply, the England Lions posted 98/1 from 34 overs before the end of the day's play. Opener Keaton Jennings was the only casualty. He got bowled bowled by Akash Deep. Alex Lees and Oliver Price remained unbeaten for 48 and 20 respectively. England Lions trail by 94 runs with nine wickets in hand.
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