Karn takes five-for as NZ A implode in defeat

Legspinner Karn Sharma extended his dominance over New Zealand A into the List A format with a five-for that helped India A take a 1-0 lead in the five-match one-day series. Karn, who had taken 16 wickets in the two four-dayers against New Zealand A, took 5 for 22 to limit the opposition to 143 in the third match in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday. Despite a top-order slump, India A completed the chase with six wickets and more than 25 overs to spare.

New Zealand A had a promising start after opting to bat first, with George Worker and Colin Munro adding 39 by the eighth over. Both, however, were out within a short span and two more wickets left New Zealand A at 97 for 4. Henry Nicholls and Colin de Grandhomme attempted something of a repair job with a partnership of 37 for the fifth wicket but it took only eight overs for the rest of New Zealand A's innings to unravel. Nicholls was dismissed for 35 in the 31st over and his wicket began a slide that saw New Zealand A lose six wickets for merely nine runs. Karn was central to this slide, taking four of the six wickets in consecutive overs, including those of Nicholls and de Grandhomme. Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem and allrounder Deepak Hooda took three wickets between them to wipe out the rest of the line-up.

India A's top three were all dismissed for single digits but Shreyas Iyer, Vijay Shankar (47 not out) and Hooda (35 not out) ensured they reached the target comfortably. Iyer, who had struck 90 in the tied match on Tuesday, made 37 off 36 before Hooda and Shankar completed the chase with a 57-run partnership.