Badani takes India A to facile win

India A 201 for 3 (Badani 85*, Gambhir 51) beat Sri Lanka A 200 (Jayantha 65, Nawaz 57) by 7 wickets
Scorecard

Hemang Badani, with his quickfire unbeaten 85, anchored India A to a convincing seven-wicket victory in their third match of the Kenstar tournament. The India bowlers turned out a splendid performance this morning and bundled out the opposition for only 200 - a paltry total when one considers the run-feasts that the previous matches served up.

After opting to bat first, Sri Lanka A were struggling at 39 for 3, before Saman Jayantha and Naveed Nawaz stemmed the rot with a sturdy 85-run stand. Though both of them hammered two sixes apiece, they were mostly kept on a tight leash by the bowlers. Sanjay Bangar was the most successful of the lot with three wickets, while Sarandeep Singh and Munaf Patel impressed with his economy, while chipping in with two wickets each.

India A `s reply began shakily as Sanjay Bangar and Mohammad Kaif fell cheaply. But Gautam Gambhir continued his rich vein of form, slamming six fours in his 51 and added 85 for the third wicket with Badani. Gambhir's solidity was complimented by Badani's flourish, with the latter cracking eight fours and a six in his 92-ball effort. Gambhir fell shortly after bringing up his fifty, but Yuvraj Singh (33 off 34) joined his captain and provided the finishing touches and India A registered their second consecutive win of the tournament.