Young Indian bowlers send half of England Under-19's batting lineup back to the pavillion for 80 but captain Thomas Rew and Ekansh Singh's half-centuries helped them survive Day 1 of the second Youth Test at County Ground, Chelmsford.
New-ball bowlers strike before rain interruption
India Under-19 captain Ayush Mhatre won the toss and chose to field first in gloomy conditions. The decision paid off as Aditya Rawat and Henil Patel struck in their respective first over to send both openers back to the pavillion. Rain interrupted play in the sixth over when the hosts were 18/2.
Wickets fall at regular intervals
Early lunch was taken. Soon after the game's resumption, Rawat struck again. He got rid of Rocky Flintoff who scored 16 runs from 26 balls. RS Ambrish got into the act and ended Aaryan Sawant's stay at the crease. He faced 57 deliveries to score 20 runs. Ben Mayes started well but could not convert it into a big score. Ambrish dismissed him for a 40-ball 31. In the 27th over, England's Young Lions were 80/5.
Ekansh, skipper steady the ship, fight from lower order
Ekansh and Rew did damage control with their 90-run partnership for the sixth wicket. Rew scored at a slightly faster rate. In the 42nd over, Naman Pushpak broke the partnership. Captain and wicketkeeper-batter Rew departed for a 79-ball 59. He hit eight fours and a six during his knock.
The lower order joined forces with Ekansh and took the score past 200. But Pushpak struck again to get the wicket of Ralphie Albert. He scored 16 runs from 34 balls. At the end of Day 2's play, England U19 were 229/7 from 62 overs. Ekansh remained unbeaten for 66 off 98 balls, including seven fours and a six. On the other end, James Minto scored 18 runs from 36 deliveries.
Indian bowlers' performance on Day 1
For the visitors, Rawat, Ambrish and Pushpak two wickets each. Patel took a wicket with the new ball whereas Kanish Chouhan and Vaibhav Suryavanshi remained wicketless. Suryavanshi who had claimed two scaps in the previous game, bowled three overs and conceded nine runs. Off-spinner Chouhan bowled 10 overs including two maidens and conceded 38 runs.