India A pulled off a memorable run chase against Australia A to clinch the unofficial Test series 1-0. Powered by centuries from KL Rahul and B Sai Sudharsan, the hosts chased down a massive 412-run target to win the second unofficial Test in Lucknow by five wickets.
Rahul’s Masterclass in the Chase
Resuming on the fourth morning after retiring hurt on 74 the previous evening, Rahul returned with focus and determination. He batted through till the end, finishing unbeaten on 176 off 210 balls, decorated with 16 fours and four sixes. His strike rate of 83.81 highlighted his dominance.
“𝑹𝒂𝒉𝒖𝒍 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒂 𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂’𝒔 𝑻𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒕𝒖𝒑 – 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒎, 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆.”
At the other end, Sai Sudharsan continued his fine form, scoring a fluent 100 before being dismissed. The duo added 78 runs together in the morning session to set up the chase.
Partnerships Break Australia A’s Resistance
Earlier, Manav Suthar’s wicket had brought Rahul back to the crease, and from there, India A never looked back. Sai Sudharsan’s ton and Rahul’s solidity were complemented by Dhruv Jurel, who smashed a quickfire 56 off 66 balls with five fours and three sixes. Their 115-run stand ensured Australia A could not recover.
Corey Rocchiccioli tried to pull things back, removing both Sai Sudharsan and Jurel, but it was too little too late. Australia’s bowling lacked experience, with Todd Murphy (7 Tests) and Cooper Connolly (1 Test) leading the attack.
“𝑶𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝑹𝒂𝒉𝒖𝒍 𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 150, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝒅𝒐𝒖𝒃𝒕 – 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝑨 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒎𝒍𝒚 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒑.”
Rahul eventually guided India A to victory alongside Nitish Kumar Reddy (16*), securing a famous win after a shaky first-innings display.
What’s Next
With this win, India A take the two-match unofficial Test series 1-0 after the opening game ended in a draw. The action now shifts to Kanpur for the three-match one-day series, beginning on September 30, 2025.
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