Yashasvi Jaiswal scores 102 as India A reach 227 for 2 in Lincoln in third four-day match

Yashasvi Jaiswal struck 102 off 138 balls for India A against New Zealand A in the third four-day match at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln on Saturday, his second successive century following an unbeaten 155 in the second match at Hagley Oval. India A finished the rain-hit opening day on 227 for 2, with B Sai Sudharsan unbeaten on 77 after a 175-run opening stand with Jaiswal.

Jaiswal began cautiously on a green surface after India A lost the toss and the openers negotiated movement from Brett Randell and Zak Gibson before accelerating when the first-change bowlers arrived. He reached his hundred off 127 deliveries and his innings included 16 fours and two sixes; two consecutive boundaries off Dean Foxcroft brought up his century. The innings followed an unbeaten 155 in Christchurch, which was Jaiswal’s 18th first-class hundred and took him past the 5,000-run mark in the format.

The 24-year-old had struggled in recent red-ball outings, managing 77 runs across three innings during India’s two-Test tour of Sri Lanka in August and failing to record a half-century in the format since then. On the New Zealand A tour he began with scores of 17 and 5 in the first unofficial Test and registered a four-ball duck in the first innings of the second match; he had also fallen for a 13-ball duck in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy opener against Chandigarh, tallying four ducks in nine innings since the Sri Lanka tour.

During the Lincoln innings Jaiswal took on Jarrod McKay with a six and a series of boundaries once the pace bowlers eased; he survived a dropped catch at first slip before moving into the nineties. Cramps forced him to receive medical attention late in his stay, and after resuming he attempted to drive Danru Ferns but chipped the ball to mid-off and was dismissed for 102.

At the other end Sai Sudharsan provided support, reaching his second half-century of the series as part of the 175-run opening partnership with Jaiswal. Devdutt Padikkal was out for 15 after edging Zak Gibson behind, and Dhruv Jurel joined Sudharsan at the crease before rain ended play for the day.

The India A squad for the tour includes several players from India’s Test group, with Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Prasidh Krishna all named in the side. Jaiswal’s 102 in Lincoln gives him another substantial innings ahead of the senior team’s upcoming two-Test series, which begins on November 19.

Jaiswal’s return to big scores will be an encouraging development for the visitors as they prepare for the Test challenge beginning on November 19.