Mate by repetition: Spin duo Karn, Nadeem help India A thrash Kiwis with day to spare

The wicket at the Dr Gokaraju Liala Gangaaraju ACA Cricket Ground on the outskirts of Vijayawada hardly took turn.
Karn Sharma | RVK Rao
Karn Sharma | RVK Rao

VIJAYAWADA:The wicket at the Dr Gokaraju Liala Gangaaraju ACA Cricket Ground on the outskirts of Vijayawada hardly took turn. But New Zealand A, which struggled against India A spin duo of Karn Sharma and Shahbaz Nadeem in the first innings, once again repeated the same tale as the hosts went 1-0 up in the two-match series with an innings and 31-run win on Monday. The four-day match got over on the third day.

Though Karn and Nadeem got any assist from the pitch, the duo were relentless in their accuracy and line. Mostly bowling a teasing line, by giving a lot of air, the two made New Zealand A commit mistakes. This was evident from the spinners’ match-hauls of eight wickets each. Beginning with their overnight total of 64/2, New Zealand A collapsed to 142 in the second session as not even a single player crossed the fifty-run mark.

George Worker, who looked good on Day 2, began in the same manner on Monday, but 15-minutes into Day Three, his attempted slog-sweep, ended up in the ball ricocheting back to the stumps. New Zealand A then found themselves at 98/5 before lunch. The lower-order, especially wicketkeeper Tim Seifert, resisted for a while, but Karn and Nadeem proved too good.

Brief Scores: New Zealand A 147 & 142 (George Worker 35; Karn Sharma 4/62, Shahbaz Nadeem 4/51) vs India A 320. India A won by innings and 31 runs.

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