India A Playing XI: Prabhsimran Singh (w), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma (c), Ayush Badoni, Suryansh Shedge, Nishant Sindhu, Anukul Roy, Arshad Khan, Vipraj Nigam, Yash Thakur
Sri Lanka A Playing XI: Niroshan Dickwella (w), Avishka Fernando, Vishen Halambage, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ahan Wickramasinghe, Sahan Arachchige (c), Wanuja Sahan, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Kugathas Mathulan, Chamika Karunaratne, Mohamed Shiraz
India A will aim to return to winning ways when they face Sri Lanka A in a crucial tri-series clash on Sunday, with all three teams level after two rounds. India began their campaign with an eight-run victory over Sri Lanka but suffered a surprise four-run defeat to Afghanistan A via the DLS method in a rain-hit encounter. Sri Lanka, meanwhile, bounced back strongly by defeating Afghanistan to keep the race for the final wide open.
Despite the setback, India A’s batting has been in excellent touch. Prabhsimran Singh led the charge with 84 against Afghanistan, while captain Tilak Varma and vice-captain Ruturaj Gaikwad struck their second successive fifties. Teen sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi once again impressed with a blistering 44 off 22 balls, adding 74 runs with Prabhsimran for the opening wicket.
Off the field, Vaibhav’s childhood coach Manish Ojha revealed the secret behind the youngster’s meteoric rise. According to him, Sooryavanshi trained for nearly eight hours a day and faced over 600 deliveries regularly, developing the muscle memory behind his explosive batting. Ojha also highlighted the sacrifices made by the batter’s parents, particularly his mother Aarti, who would wake up at 2 am to prepare meals for players and support staff. With qualification still hanging in the balance, Sunday’s clash promises to be a high-stakes affair.
