Vihari, Nair help India A seize initiative

The see-saw battle of fortunes turned in India A's favour going into the final day of the second unofficial Test as half-centuries by Hanuma Vihari and Karun Nair put them in a favourable position against Windies A in Taunton.

Windies, who were in a strong position coming into Day 3 of the second unofficial Test, suffered a collapse and handed over the initiative to their opposition. Resuming their second innings on 96 for 1, with a 206-run lead to boast of, they lost nine wickets on Thursday in exchange of only 114 runs.

John Campbell was the first to fall after registering his 16th first-class 50. His departure paved way for a flurry of wickets. The first bout of wickets went to Mohammed Siraj, who finished with four in the second innings. Jermaine Blackwood played a stroke-filled innings, held one end strong for a long time and also notched up a fifty but could manage only 65 before getting castled by Rajneesh Gurbani.

After the top three, Vishaul Singh (16) was the only batsman who managed a double-digit score as Windies A were bundled out for 210 in their second essay.

Chasing 321 for a win, India A got off to a steady start with R Samarth and Abhimanyu Easwaran putting on a half-century stand. Some erratic bowling by the Windies allowed India A to collect useful runs early on in their chase. There were 25 byes and 17 wides, apart from 3 no balls in the 46 overs on the third day.

However, the real momentum to India A's chase was provided by Vihari and Nair, who stitched a 136-run stand once both the openers were back in the pavilion with only 78 runs on the board. While Vihari was steady with his approach, skipper Nair struck eight boundaries in his 63-ball stay to crunch his 17th first-class fifty.

India A looked well placed with 107 runs needed and eight wickets in hand before the final ball of the day - when Jomel Warrican had Nair dismissed.

Brief scores: Windies A 302 & 210 (Jermaine Blackwood 67, John Campbell 61; Mohammed Siraj 4-64, Rajneesh Gurbani 3-64) lead India A 192 & 214/3 (Hanuma Vihari 65*, Karun Nair 55; Romario Shepherd 1-25) by 106 runs.