Sport - Cricket

Raina puts India ‘A’ on top

— Photo: K. Pichumani

IN FULL FLOW: India ‘A’ skipper Suresh Raina scored a smashing hundred against New Zealand ‘A’ in Chennai on Tuesday.

Chennai: Each of Suresh Raina’s eight sixes at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday obeyed that tired stock phrase of cricket writing — he opened his shoulders. Waves of torque swept through the India ‘A’ skipper’s upper body each time he cleared the boundary, whether muscling over midwicket on one knee or lofting straight after stepping out.

His 130-ball 146 ensured that New Zealand ‘A’ went into the fourth innings with chances of victory remote. Set 355 to win, New Zealand ‘A’ lost B.J. Watling in the final hour of the third and penultimate day, Mohnish Parmar getting him lbw from around the wicket, maybe a tad high on the pad. From 90 overs on Wednesday, New Zealand ‘A’ requires 314 to win, with nine wickets in hand.

Raina went from 49 to 139 in the post-lunch session, where five, or sometimes six, fielders patrolled the boundary almost every over. Content to walk the unchallenged singles at first, Raina offered a glimpse of the anarchy to follow by getting from 92 to 98 with a six off Nathan McCullum.

After he reached his hundred with a three off medium-pacer Neil Broom, leggie Aaron Redmond replaced McCullum from the Pattabiram Gate end. After patting the first ball back, Raina spewed sixes — five from five balls — as if by spontaneous combustion, rendering deep midwicket and wide long on redundant. The first went straight, and the next four with the turn, beyond the midwicket fence.

After Raina finally holed out in the second over after tea, Brent Arnel’s straight-and-narrow approach tumbled the innings to a close. He sent back Amith Mishra, Parmar and Ashok Dinda in one over, with the score on 329 — two leg-before, one bowled. Wriddhiman Saha made 39, mostly in Raina’s shadow.

In the first session, Raina and M. Vijay put on 83 for the third wicket off 89 balls, punishing seam and spin on a wicket which seemed to crave electrolytes; so tamely did the short balls sit up. Vijay made 57, and revelled in Arnel’s bowling, as in the first innings. Three fours — a straight drive and two pulls — came off successive deliveries. Top-spin imparted by wrist and forearms produced the third, after the ball froze shoulder-high outside off.

The scores: India ‘A’ — 1st innings: 248.

New Zealand ‘A’ — 1st innings: 230.

India ‘A’ —2nd innings: S. Kukreja c Young b Boult 41, S. Dhawan c Redmond b Boult 7, M. Vijay c Fulton b Redmond 57, S. Raina c Marshall b McCullum 146, J. Shah c Young b Redmond 7, Y. Pathan c Watling b McCullum 25, W. Saha b Arnel 39, A. Mishra lbw b Arnel 3, M. Parmar lbw b Arnel 0, A. Dinda b Arnel 0, S. Tyagi (not out) 0; Extras (b-4, lb-3, nb-2, w-2): 11; Total (in 85 overs): 336.

Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-73, 3-156, 4-171, 5-230, 6-318, 7-329, 8-329, 9-329.

New Zealand ‘A’ bowling: Mason 13-3-25-0, Boult 12-4-34-2, Arnel 13-3-38-4, McCullum 28-3-118-2, Redmond 12-0-92-2, Broom 7-1-22-0.

New Zealand ‘A’ — 2nd innings: A. Redmond (batting) 25, B.J. Watling lbw b Parmar 6, P. Fulton (batting) 7; Extras (lb-1, nb-2): 3; Total (for one wkt. in 18 overs): 41.

Fall of wicket: 1-22.

India ‘A’ bowling: Dinda 4-0-7-0, Tyagi 3-0-11-0, Parmar 6-3-9-1, Mishra 5-1-13-0.

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