India A tour of South Africa, 2013

[saneindian]

Pujara deserves credit for his bold captaincy as well. Very easy in such A games to not enforce the follow on and instead pile on the runs. Che made it a match to remember and his young bowlers responded brilliantly.

[FischerTal]

Pujara deserves credit for his bold captaincy as well. Very easy in such A games to not enforce the follow on and instead pile on the runs. Che made it a match to remember and his young bowlers responded brilliantly.

future test captain? :woot:

[saneindian]

future test captain? :woot:

2015 tak Dhoni, 2020 tak Kohli and uske aage Che - a bit like the Ganguly Dravid scenario

[rkt.india]

Hope to see Kaul play the next match in place of Unadkat. Unadkat will not be successful in days cricket until he bowls inswinger to right handers effectively. He does inswing but does not bowl it full enough.

[FischerTal]

2015 tak Dhoni' date=' 2020 tak Kohli and uske aage Che - a bit like the Ganguly Dravid scenario[/quote'] :((

[Laaloo]

2015 tak Dhoni' date=' 2020 tak Kohli and uske aage Che - a bit like the Ganguly Dravid scenario[/quote'] Pujara will be lucky to still be in the team in 2015 :cantstop:

[Chandan]

Pujara will be lucky to still be in the team in 2015 :cantstop:

Pujara will be in the test team for next 10 years at least. And if you had been thinking of ODIs, just read the previous comments, that people were discussing tests!! Pujara's captaincy in tests is being praised here. You enforce follow on in tests, not ODIs, (if you follow cricket).

[cowboysfan]

Pujara will be lucky to still be in the team in 2015 :cantstop:

:yousuck:

[Chandan]

Test 2, Day 1 Parnell, Harmer resist after India A impress Ken Borland | Pretoria | 24 August 2013 India A’s bowlers thoroughly dominated the first half of the opening day before Wayne Parnell and Simon Harmer broke the shackles in the afternoon as they took South Africa A to 231 for 6 at stumps in their four-day match at the LC de Villiers Oval in Pretoria on Saturday (August 24). India had claimed six wickets in the first three hours of play, with the in-form Ishwar Pandey and new spinner Parveez Rasool collecting two each, but Parnell and Harmer steadied the innings and then greedily accumulated runs as they added 134 for the seventh wicket. South Africa A had won the toss and elected to bat, but were in immediate trouble as Siddarth Kaul had Dean Elgar caught off a short-pitched delivery for a duck at the end of the fourth over, and Pandey then had Reeza Hendricks caught behind for two and dismissed Rilee Rossouw for three. Once the cloud cover had burned away, spinners Rasool and Shahbaz Nadeem then bowled with patience and accuracy on a slowish pitch as they worked their way through the middle-order and reduced SA A to a parlous 97 for 6 midway through the afternoon session. Nadeem had Justin Ontong caught close to the wicket for 28 in the final over before lunch, and Rasool, the offspinner, then had Thami Tsolekile caught pulling for 13 and trapped Temba Bavuma lbw on the back foot for a promising 42 in the space of four deliveries in his second over. The spinners repressed the run-rate well as Parnell needed 144 deliveries for his half-century and Harmer 99, before they went on to 63 and 68 not out when stumps were called eight-and-a-half overs early as the rapidly-setting winter sun caused bad light to stop play. While it was a wonderful effort by the two Eastern Cape Warriors bowlers, India A will still be the happier of the two sides after a top-class bowling effort. Nadeem (22-5-65-1) and Parvez Rasool (18-6-39-2) shared a majority of the bowling workload, but on a pitch not known for helping the pace bowlers, Pandey produced another impressive display. Generally keeping to a fullish length, Pandey took two for 49 in 16 overs and showed once again why aficionados are speaking with such high hopes about the 24-year-old. He dismissed both Hendricks and Rossouw with full deliveries, bowling similar lengths as in Rustenburg in the first four-dayer when he took seven for 71 in the match. “I was feeling good and happy with my bowling with the new ball, although we probably should have taken more wickets when they were 97 for six and finished them off,” said Pandey “Compared to Rustenburg, this pitch is comparatively good and coming on nicely, but 300 is par from here so we need to get them out quickly.” “I was bowling more off-cutters in Rustenburg, but here I was trying to get the batsmen out by bowling a good length and trying to get some swing.” South Africa A coach Vincent Barnes has urged his bowlers to follow suit, but at the moment the batsmen have left them with the toughest of asks in this match. The second new ball is practically brand new so the India A bowlers hold all the aces right now. The tourists have made five changes to their team, leaving out Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Jaydev Unadkat, Shikhar Dhawan and Mohammad Shami. Dinesh Karthik, Ambati Rayudu, Stuart Binny, Kaul and Rasool have been brought into the team. http://goo.gl/MyTu2S And if we see from south african point of view: Parnell and Harmer lead SA A fightback 24 August 2013, 19:00 A 134-run seventh-wicket partnership between Wayne Parnell and Simon Harmer put South Africa A (SA A) in a respectable position of 231 for six on the opening day of the second unofficial test against India A at the Tuks Cricket Oval in Pretoria on Saturday. Parnell (64 not out) and Harmer (68 not out) batted with patience and executed calculated risks when needed, skills which the rest of the top order batsmen failed to follow through. "We are in a great position compared to what we were on at lunch," batsman Temba Bavuma said at the close of play. "The way Wayne and Simon have fought back at the end of the innings has been fantastic. "They have put us in a good position, it will be important for us to push on tomorrow morning." Earlier, Justin Ontong won the toss and elected to bat first in favourable conditions despite overhead cloud cover. The SA A batting line-up was immediately put under pressure at 11 for three, with the wickets of Dean Elgar (0), Reeza Hendricks (2) and Rilee Rossouw (3) in the first six overs. "We thought with the cloud cover the ball would swing a bit more but the wicket was a bit sticky and two-paced," Bavuma said of the conditions. The Highveld Lions batsman was once again among the runs, and partnered in key stands with Justin Ontong (28) and Thami Tsolekile (13) before being given out lbw for 42. The lower order offered some resistance, which built the momentum for the game-changing partnership between Parnell and Harmer. "We would have wanted to maximise the partnerships but we'll take the position we are in now compared to then," Bavuma added. Ishwar Pandey was the impact performer with the new ball taking 2-49, and offspinner Parvez Rasool made an important contribution with 2-39. SA A made one change to the side that suffered the innings and 13 run loss in Rustenburg, with Beuran Hendricks coming in for JP Duminy. India A made five changes to their team, leaving out Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Jaydev Unadkat, Shikhar Dhawan and Mohammed Shami. SOUTH AFRICA A: RR Hendricks, D Elgar, TL Tsolekile (wk), JL Ontong (capt), RR Rossouw, T Bavuma, WD Parnell, SR Harmer, KJ Abbott, ACR Birch, BE Hendricks INDIA A: CA Pujara (capt), M Vijay, KD Karthik, AT Rayudu, AM Rahane, STR Binny, WP Saha (wk), S Kaul, S Nadeem, IC Pandey, Parvez Rasool http://goo.gl/yexgFC

[Chandan]

Test 2, Day 2: Harmer, Parnell push India A on to back foot Ken Borland | Pretoria | 25 August 2013 A meek batting display by India A ensured that they handed over the advantage to South Africa A as they finished the second day of their four-day match on 145 for six, still trailing by 196 runs at the L.C. de Villiers Oval in Pretoria on Sunday (august 25). Having allowed SA A to rally from 97 for six to 341 all out, India A then wasted a solid platform in their first innings as they collapsed after being 95 for one in the over before tea. It was Cheteshwar Pujara, the captain, who started the ugly rot by slashing loosely outside off stump and playing into the hands of the short gully fielder, who had been brought in for Beuran Hendricks, the left-arm paceman. Four more wickets followed in the final session as Ambati Rayadu was left as the last specialist batsman standing on 14 not out off 67 balls. India A had come in to bat straight after the delayed luncheon interval and Murali Vijay, who has not had the best of tours, fell at the end of the second over as he was trapped lbw for four by Hendricks. But Pujara, who drove through the covers with great elegance to collect five fours, and Ajinkya Rahane, who was more watchful than his skipper, batted steadily and confidently for the rest of the session before Pujara’s unfortunate lapse in the last over before the break. It was Simon Harmer, the off-spinner, who made the next breakthrough as Dinesh Karthik (9) played a disappointing stroke and was caught at deep square-leg after playing a slog-sweep. SA A were 0-1 down in the two-match series and understandably there was a little more life in the University of Pretoria pitch and Hendricks was the bowler able to exploit that most effectively. The home side were without the services of their other left-arm quick, Wayne Parnell, who complained of struggling to breathe and had a highly elevated heart-rate that necessitated a check-up at a local hospital, but Hendricks has made up for it with a great effort in which he claimed three for 28 in 14 overs, half of which were been maidens. Hendricks trapped Rahane lbw for a patient 36 in two-and-a-half hours and, with Wriddhiman Saha (14) also being trapped in front of his stumps by Kyle Abbott and Stuart Binny being bowled by Harmer for a duck, India A were struggling at 145 for six by stumps. The India A bowlers are all that is left to accompany Rayudu and they didn’t appear to be in the best frames of mind after being persecuted by Parnell and Harmer in a seventh-wicket stand of 186 and then thoroughly frustrated by Andrew Birch, the No. 10 batsman, who added an irritating 44 not out. Harmer eventually fell in the 18th over of the day when Shahbaz Nadeem trapped him in front for 96, scored in four hours, 25 minutes and including 13 fours and a six. Parnell also fell in sight of a century – which would have been his first in first-class cricket – when he edged Ishwar Pandey into the gloves of wicketkeeper Saha for 91, made in 313 minutes, off 259 balls. Pandey once again finished as the best of the India A bowlers, taking three for 67 in 24 overs, while Nadeem claimed three for 99 in 33 overs and there were two wickets apiece for Parvez Rasool and Siddharth Kaul. Harmer said the home felt in control of proceedings. “We’re in a strong position because I think 341 is an extremely good score in the first innings. This pitch is deteriorating a lot quicker than the other ones have here and I think the totals are just going to get less smaller and smaller,” said Harmer. “We’re in a very good position because there was some turn and bounce later on and our two left-armers have created some nice foot holes to work with.” http://goo.gl/2Um0Dw SA A make India A suffer 25 August 2013, 17:30 South Africa A’s bowlers grabbed the initiative on the second day of the second unofficial four-day test against India A at the Tuks Cricket Oval in Pretoria on Sunday. At stumps India A were on 145 for six, still trailing SA A’s first innings score of 341 by 196 runs. Left-arm seamer Beuran Hendricks (3-28) dismissed India A’s top three batsmen with an impressive spell of bowling to start the batting decline, which was then exploited by wickets late in the day from Simon Harmer (2-43) and Kyle Abbott (1-42). India A captain, Cheteshwar Pujara, made the top score for his side of 54 with Rajinkya Rahane, who scored 36, providing some support. Earlier, Harmer and Wayne Parnell had started the day positively, adding 52 runs to their overnight contribution for the seventh wicket. Shahbaz Nadeem eventually broke the 186-run partnership when he trapped Harmer lbw four runs short of what would have been a deserved century. Parnell also missed out on three figures, being caught behind for a patient 91 off 318 balls off the bowling of Ishwar Pandey. The last-wicket pair of Andrew Birch and Beuran Hendricks added a valuable 50-run partnership, with Birch blasting 44 runs off 58 balls to beef up the total. Pandey (3-67) and Nadeem (3-99) were the top wicket-takers, with Siddarth Kaul (2-71) and Parvez Rasool (2-55) also amongst the wickets. Harmer’s innings included 13 fours and one six, and was a testing but satisfying performance for the 24 year-old Chevrolet Warriors player. “It was good to get some runs,” Harmer said. “My batting hasn’t been up to scratch in the last two seasons and I have been working hard on it; it’s good to reap some rewards from the hard work. “At the start Wayne and I looked to occupy the crease for as long as possible. We knew that they were going to get impatient because they were looking to get into the tail to wrap up the innings, so we knew that the longer we stayed there the more we could capitalise on their mistakes.” Monday is going to be an important day, as the hosts look to take full control of the match. “This pitch is deteriorating at a faster pace than in previous games here,” Harmer remarked. “I think 340 is a good first innings total on this pitch. Totals are going to become lower as the match progresses and you won’t want to be batting last. “We have got ourselves into a good position but there is still a lot of work to be done,” he added. “We have ticked the right boxes today so it will be important to do the same on day three.” Note: Wayne Parnell injury update Wayne Parnell complained of shortness of breath after bowling two overs in India A’s innings. He was taken to the hospital for further examination and was unable to take part in the rest of the day’s play. http://goo.gl/kUyScb

[jj_28]

No Dhawan, no Rohit and India batting falls apart, coincidence :headshake: Glad to see Pujara continuing to do well hopefully Rahane will as well and make a case for himself in the longer format Vijay is a good player but not on overseas wicket. Dhawan-Rohit should open in SA.

[Brainfade]

List of things we learned from the SA "A" tour (1) Keep Stuart Binny as far away as possible from the national team (2) Ishwar Pandey is an asset (3) Che Pujara is a total guru. (4) Che Pujara's favorite batting position may be #3, but he will most likely be in within the first over, anyway. It's better that he opens in place of MV, we put Kohli in at #3, and play musical chairs for 5 and 6.

[Sandeep99]

(1) Keep Stuart Binny as far away as possible from the national team (2) Ishwar Pandey is an asset (3) Che Pujara is a total guru. (4) Che Pujara's favorite batting position may be #3, but he will most likely be in within the first over, anyway. It's better that he opens in place of MV, we put Kohli in at #3, and play musical chairs for 5 and 6.

:hysterical::hysterical::hysterical:

[Number]

Rohit needs to play test asap.

[Old guy]

Unadkat is good only for odis Pandey and shami are better than kaul and others in tests Batting wise rahane needs more backing as he is class act Imo overall it was awesome a tour for us

[FischerTal]

Rohit and rahane should be in test team. Pandey and shami were the best bowlers.

[Cricketics]

Things we learned from SA A tour is that Cheteshwar Pujara is our best batsman among the "A" team and probably even for our National side too. So as you are recommending him to move on opening spot. I would say, let's not touch his slot of no. 3. He's doing his best at no. 3. This is where he impressed everyone when DHoni promoted him in 2010 series against Australia and he scored that match winning knock in chase and sealed no. 3 slot. So let him just bat there. He hasn't become Dravid yet that he can switch between opening and test. Dravid was great on confidence to do anything for the team. Let's not put Pujara into that situation and mess up his run. Couple of failures against Steyn, Morkel can dent his confidence. Let him come at no. 3

[Pagalpanti]

Vijay deserves to be dropped despite having a great series vs Aus. Horses for courses kind of selection.. Like someone said let Pujara open and slot in Rahane and Rohit and 5 and 6 with Kohli at 3

[saneindian]

Vijay deserves to be dropped despite having a great series vs Aus. Horses for courses kind of selection.. Like someone said let Pujara open and slot in Rahane and Rohit and 5 and 6 with Kohli at 3

Horses for courses doesn't mean going into such a major series with a totally tinkered batting line up. Vijay has earned his spot in the test side based on those massive 100s vs Aus and a failure in one FC match shouldn't mean him losing his spot. Unless he in very poor form prior to the SA tour, he should be there. The biggest casualty of the A tour would be DK

[GolGappe]

Dinesh Kaarthik is not good enough to feature as a specialist bat in India, India A, or India B squads. Not amongst top 20 batsmen in the country.