NEW DELHI: India A began their Tri-Nation Series campaign with a thrilling eight-run win over Sri Lanka A in Dambulla on Tuesday, thanks to a dramatic turnaround in the final overs.The visitors looked headed for defeat when Sri Lanka A captain Sahan Arachchige played a superb knock of 74 off 72 balls and put his team in complete control of the chase of 278. But India A held their nerve and produced a stunning comeback to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Sri Lanka A in control after Arachchige masterclassChasing 278, Sri Lanka A got off to a solid start through Niroshan Dickwella (47) and Avishka Fernando (45), who added 93 runs for the opening wicket.Although Ayush Badoni removed both openers, Arachchige kept Sri Lanka A on course with a composed innings. He found support from the middle order and later from Wanuja Sahan as the hosts moved closer to the target.At one stage, Sri Lanka A needed just 22 runs from the last four overs with four wickets in hand and appeared to have one foot over the finish line.Kamboj’s yorker changes the gameThe turning point came in the 48th over.With Sri Lanka needing 16 runs from 16 balls, Anshul Kamboj delivered a perfect yorker to bowl the well-set Arachchige for 74. The wicket gave India A a much-needed opening and suddenly the pressure shifted back onto the Sri Lankan batters.Kamboj’s breakthrough injected fresh belief into the Indian camp and set up a tense finish.Arshad Khan‘s final-over heroicsArshad Khan then took charge in the death overs and produced a match-winning spell.Sri Lanka A needed only 10 runs from the final two overs and still had three wickets in hand. However, Arshad struck twice in quick succession in the 49th over. He trapped Vijayakanth Viyaskanth lbw before a sharp run-out by Ruturaj Gaikwad removed Wanuja Sahan, who had threatened to take the game away from India.The wickets left Sri Lanka A reeling and exposed the tail.Arshad then returned in the final over and picked up three wickets as Sri Lanka A lost their last four wickets in the space of just 10 deliveries to hand India A an unlikely victory.Gaikwad century anchors India A inningsEarlier, India A recovered from a poor start to post 277 for six.There was plenty of focus on teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, but his first List A innings for India A ended on 14. Prabhsimran Singh also departed cheaply as India slipped to 16 for two.Vice-captain Ruturaj Gaikwad steadied the innings with a classy 101 off 114 balls, his 21st List A century. Alongside captain Tilak Varma (60), he stitched together a crucial 150-run partnership for the fourth wicket.The pair batted patiently in challenging conditions before accelerating later in the innings.Badoni and Shedge provide finishing touchesAfter the departures of Gaikwad and Tilak, Ayush Badoni (24 off 18) and Suryansh Shedge (26 not out off 14) added valuable late runs.Their quick 46-run stand helped India A cross the 270-run mark, a total that eventually proved just enough.India A will next face Afghanistan A on June 11 as they look to build on a dramatic opening victory in the tri-series.
