Thomas half century can’t prevent Windies A loss
DEVON THOMAS struck a half-century but the Windies A lost their second straight match in the TriNation Series with a sevenwicket defeat to India A here yesterday.
Opting to bat first at Grace Road, Windies A were dismissed for 221 in the final over, with Thomas striking 64 from 83 deliveries.
Opener Chandrapaul Hemraj got 45, captain Jason Mohammed chipped in with 31 while senior team all-rounder Rovman Powell scored 24.
Windies were going well at 86 for two but their innings fell apart as the last eight wickets tumbled for 135 runs, with seamer Deepak Chahar claiming five for 27.
Opener Mayank Agarwal then carved out a superb 112 to fire India A to their target in the 39th over, and hand his side their first win of the tournament following their opening loss last Friday.
Shubman Gill hammered 58 not out while opener Prithvi Shaw chimed in with a cameo 27.
Eighteen-year-old Shaw provided the innings with a flying start, smashing six fours in a 16-ball knock as he put on 38 off 28 balls for the first wicket with Agarwal.
Once Shaw fell, however, Agarwal took control of the innings, striking 11 fours and a pair of sixes. More importantly, he put on a crucial 148 for the second wicket with Gill who faced 92 deliveries and counted five fours.
The Windies had earlier struggled at the start, losing opener Jermaine Blackwood without scoring and Andre McCarthy for 11, to slump to 14 for two in the third over.
Hemraj and Mohammed propped up the innings in a 72run, third wicket stand, pulling Windies A back into the contest.
The left-handed Hemraj belted eight fours and a six in a 45-ball innings while Mohammed faced 47 balls and counted four fours.
Both fell in the space of 32 balls to leave Windies A stumbling 102 for four in the 21st over before Thomas and Powell added 31 to hold off India A, albeit temporarily.
However, once Powell was lbw to Chahar in the 29th over, Windies A lost their last five wickets for 88 runs.