Ruturaj Gaikwad's India suffer 69-run rout at the hands of Australia to lose series 0-2 despite Rajat Patidar's exploits

Australia A thrash India A by 69 runs to win unofficial ODI series

Chasing a competitive target of 276, the hosts were bundled out for 206 in 45.2 overs. A familiar top-order collapse derailed India A’s chase early on, leaving Rajat Patidar as the lone bright spot in an otherwise dismal batting effort.

Konstas, Philippe's fifties drive Aussies home

Australia A won the toss and opted to bat. Opener Mitchell Owen made an immediate impact, taking 17 runs off Arshad Khan’s opening over and rushing to 25 off 12 balls. However, his blistering start was cut short when he holed out off Yash Thakur.   Following Owen's departure, Sam Konstas and Josh Philippe anchored the innings, putting together a 101-run partnership for the second wicket. Philippe completed a 53-ball half-century, striking regular boundaries before pulling a delivery straight to mid-wicket for 58. Konstas accumulated runs patiently to reach his own fifty, eventually falling for 67 off 88 balls when he top-edged a pull shot to the wicketkeeper.

Captain Nathan McSweeney contributed a watchful 32 before a miscommunication resulted in his run-out. Middle-order batter Lachlan Shaw added 25 before skying a delivery off spinner Vipraj Nigam to deep mid-wicket.

Indian bowlers stage late recovery

At 207 for 3 in the 37th over, Australia A were positioned to push for a score well above 300. However, the Indian bowlers pulled things back effectively in the final 13 overs.Arshad Khan found reverse swing in his second spell, taking 3 for 56. Yash Thakur mixed his paces well, using cutters effectively to return figures of 2 for 46. Australia A lost their final seven wickets for 68 runs, getting bowled out for 275 in 49.5 overs.

Chasing 276, India A needed a stable start, but the top order folded within the Powerplay overs:Sai Sudharsan: Unable to handle the bounce from Riley Meredith, falling cheaply to a short ball.Devdutt Padikkal: mistimed a shot to third man, offering an easy catch.Ruturaj Gaikwad: The captain’s poor run continued as he was dismissed following a catch by Spencer Johnson at third man.With the score reduced to 30 for 3 inside the ninth over, the chase was severely compromised. Lower down the order, Suryansh Shedge, Vipraj Nigam, and Arshad Khan failed to build substantial partnerships, leaving the tail exposed.  

Rajat Patidar's lone show in vain

Rajat Patidar was the sole batter who stood up to the Australian attack. Registering his second half-century of the series, Patidar scored a composed 67.   He worked through the early pressure, assembling a 29-run stand off 56 balls to stabilize the early collapse, followed by a 46-run fifth-wicket partnership with Nishant Sindhu. Patidar counter-attacked with controlled shots until he was caught at deep mid-wicket off another Spencer Johnson short delivery. Anukul Roy provided late resistance with an unbeaten 34, hitting two fours and two sixes, but received little support from the other end. The innings concluded in the 46th over when Yash Thakur was caught behind off Mitchell Owen.

The three-match One Day series will wrap up with the third and final fixture scheduled for Sunday at the same venue.

Key performers of the match

What did Ruturaj Gaikwad say after the match?

India A skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad expressed disappointment over his team’s early batting collapse, while praising Australia A’s bowlers for quickly reading and adapting to the pitch conditions in Puducherry.

Admitting that losing three quick wickets inside the powerplay put India A in an immediate hole, Gaikwad noted that the team spent the rest of the innings forced into a recovery mode. He credited the opposition's disciplined attack, highlighting how effectively Australia A hit their mark and maintained unrelenting consistency throughout the spell.

“Not the start we would like to have. When you lose three in the powerplay, you are on the back foot, and after that, we were playing catch-up. Lot of credit to them (Australia A) – they have adjusted to the conditions very well. They have hit their lengths really well and have been consistent,” Gaikwad said after the match.

Meanwhile, Australia A captain Nathan McSweeney admitted that winning the toss gave them an early advantage, allowing Australia A to set the pace by batting first. He also highlighted that building a score in the 270–300 run range puts immense pressure on the chasing side, particularly as the ball loses its hardness and becomes trickier to score off later in the innings.

"Lucky the toss went my way and we batted first. If you can get a total in the 270-300 range, it becomes tough with the ball going soft. Our pace bowlers have been excellent. The first game, we did not start well, so it was important to set the tone early. (Positives) In any sort of cricket, if you hold on to catches, it goes a long way (in winning), especially of their captain. Hopefully we can finish off (the series) well," McSweeney said after the match.

Right after the third match, India A team will tour to New Zealand. The India A tour to New Zealand features a three-match multi-day series running from October 24 to November 10, 2026. All three four-day encounters kick off on Saturdays and conclude on Tuesdays. Lincoln hosts the opening and closing fixtures, while Christchurch serves as the venue for the second red-ball match of the shadow tour. Meanwhile, 

India A squad for New Zealand tour:

Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravichandran Smaran, Rishabh Pant* [WK], Dhruv Jurel [C] [WK], Washington Sundar, Auqib Nabi, Akash Deep, Anshul Kamboj, Manav Suthar, Mukesh Choudhary, Sai Sudharsan, Yash Rathod, Mukesh Kumar

The schedule: