India A’s tour of Sri Lanka began with the lightest of sighs rather than a roar – an eight-run win that owed as much to patient graft as it did to a late burst of wickets. Under a sun that never quite eased up in Dambulla, Ruturaj Gaikwad’s neat, almost fuss-free 101 underpinned a total of 277 for 6. Sri Lanka A, led by the silky Sahan Arachchige, threatened for long stretches before losing their way in the last five overs.
A quick rewind to set the scene. The series is carrying an extra bit of intrigue because of 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi – already booked in for India’s senior T20I trip to Ireland later this month. His first India A outing was brief, worth all of 14 from 12 balls, but it told a small story. First ball faced? Slapped over cover. Next over? A neat glide behind point. And then, fourth over, an ambitious loft off Mohamed Shiraz that flew flat to mid-off where Arachchige hung on, both feet airborne. Over almost as soon as it began – but he has at least three more group matches to stretch those legs.
Sooryavanshi’s exit left India A 18 for 1, and they could have drifted. Instead, Prabhsimran Singh and skipper Tilak Varma kept ticking over before Gaikwad, batting out of position at No. 4, took charge. He is a late replacement, remember – Riyan Parag’s hamstring twinge opened the door, and the vice-captaincy tag came with it. On a wicket that got slower by the hour, Gaikwad’s method was simple: push hard into gaps, wait for the rare looseners. Six fours, three sixes, nothing flash for the cameras. Yet the scoreboard never stalled. A 150-run stand with Varma (71 from 83) set the platform, and a full-toss from leg-spinner Vijaykanth Viyaskanth – clubbed over midwicket – both brought up his fifty and punctured Sri Lanka A’s control.
There was one slice of luck. On 49, Gaikwad charged, was beaten, and Niroshan Dickwella fumbled the stumping. The next ball sailed into the stands. These things matter in tight games.
Down the order, Mumbai all-rounder Suryansh Shedge added a breezy 26 not out from 14, helped by Abishek Porel and Abhishek Sharma. India A finished on what looked par – maybe a tick under, maybe a tick over, no-one quite sure until the chase unfolded.
Sri Lanka A’s reply began briskly: Dickwella flicking and dabbing, Lasith Croospulle freeing his arms. Mukesh Kumar’s heavy new-ball spell removed both inside seven overs, though, and that pushed Arachchige into consolidating mode. His 74 (92 balls) was all timing through the in-field, especially square of the wicket. When he and Ashen Bandara put on 82, the equation slipped comfortably under a run-a-ball.
Enter spin and nerves. Left-arm wrist-spinner Abhishek Sharma landed a couple that bit, Varma sneaked through a tidy over, and suddenly Sri Lanka A wanted 58 from 48. Arachchige, looking to break the shackles, spooned a return catch to off-spinner Sai Sudharsan – neither slog nor drive completed. India A sensed their chance and, credit where it’s due, held their catches.
Shedge’s second act was the more telling: gentle wobble seam that kissed the surface and left right-handers searching for it. Two wickets in his final spell, plus consistent dots, left the hosts needing 15 from Mukesh’s last over. A thick inside edge, a scampered brace, a heave that found deep midwicket, and it was done. Sri Lanka A closed on 269 for 9.
There is plenty still to unpack for both sides. India A’s middle-order depth looked handy; the seam-spin balance slightly iffy. Sri Lanka A will point to a couple of missed half-chances and a middle-overs lull with the bat. For the wider series, the sub-plot remains Sooryavanshi – will the teenager convert flair into substance? Three opportunities, perhaps four, to find out.
For now, Gaikwad’s List A hundred No. 21, chalked up in just 96 innings – the quickest anyone has got there – is the headline. Not flashy, not grandiose, just ruthlessly organised. Rather like this opener.
