India hold sway for a packed house

INDIA’S white ball team completed a comfortable seven-wicket win over Derbyshire at the Incora County Ground on Friday night.

In a warm-up clash for forthcoming T20 games against England, the Indians were in control for most of the evening – not that Derbyshire were not competitive.

But a packed house, creating a good atmosphere at the Incora County Ground, enjoyed a good evening’s entertainment.

Derbyshire were put in and when Shan Masood, for eight, and Luis Reece, for one, were out within the first four overs, they were always up against it.

Wayne Madsen hit 28 from 21 balls, with four fours and a six, but Leus du Plooy lasted only four balls, hitting two of them for four, before going for nine and Madsen was out from the first ball of their ninth over with the score on 61.

From there, it was always going to be a battle to post anything that might stretch India and Derbyshire did well to get to 150-8.

The next four, new signing Hilton Cartwright, Brooke Guest, Alex Hughes and Mattie McKiernan, all got into the 20s at better than a run a ball, McKiernan hitting the only other six of the innings.

From a Derbyshire perspective, one of the biggest pluses of the night was the return to action of seam bowler Ben Aitchison, kept out of action until now by a pre-season back injury.

It was also Aitchison’s T20 debut for the county and he had Ruturaj Gaikwad caught by Cartwright for three in the first over.

Deepak Hooda and Sanju Samson took the score to 56 after that before Samson was caught by du Plooy off Mckiernan, but thereafter, Hooda and Suryakumar Yadav were largely untroubled.

India needed only 17 more when Hooda, on 59 from 37 balls, drilled Aitchison to Hughes at cover.

Yadav was 36 not out from 22 balls as he completed the victory with captain Dinesh Karthik, who hit the winning runs from the fourth ball of the 17th over.