India A Clinch Series in New Zealand after Manish Pandey’s Heroic Performance

The team won the series by 0-2 as a result of the feisty batsman’s 111 of 109 balls.

Manish Pandey’s unbeaten century anchored two key middle-order partnerships to hand underpinned India A a five-wicket win over New Zealand A.

India A was able to wrap up the 300-run chase with an over to spare in Mount Maunganui. As a result of this, the team has clinched a lead of 2-0 for the visitors in the three-match ODI series.

Manish Pandey, the India A captain, scored 111 off 109 balls that included 5 fours and 3 sixes. He first added 90 runs with Shreyas Iyer for the third wicket to propel India to 148 for 2 with the openers being dismissed by the 12th over.

After the fall of Iyer for 59 – his second consecutive half-century in the series – in the 27th over, Pandey went on to add 123 runs in the next 19 overs with Vijay Shankar. The crucial partnership also saw Shankar add a fourth consecutive fifty on tour to his name. He had played a crucial role in India A’s victory in the series opener at the same venue on Friday with an unbeaten stand of 87 runs.

At one point of time, when India A needed 29 off 27 balls offspinner Cole McConchie struck twice off consecutive deliveries to remove Shankar and wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan in quick succession to give a late scare.

However, Axar Patel who came in at the No. 7, then stayed on the crease with a 12 off 11 balls to help seal the chase before the last over.

This became India’s second chase of a target of 300+ in as many games in the ongoing series.

Earlier in the innings, despite pacer, Khaleel Ahmed’s strike sending back Hamish Rutherford in the first over, the India A bowling attack were unable to stall the other NZA opener George Worker, who, in association with Will Young, put on a crucial 190-run second-wicket stand within 33 overs.

Worker and Young scored 99 and 102 respectively but their quick wickets reduced New Zealand A to 215 for 4.

However, it was Darryl Mitchell’s 28-ball 45 run stand which lifted the hosts to a competitive total of 299.

The fast bowling trio of Navdeep Saini, Khaleel and Siddarth Kaul managed to take 5 wickets in total for 169 runs. Kaul was the most economical of the three having conceded 36 runs off 8 overs. He also accounted for McConchie who had chipped in with a useful 22-ball 21.

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