Duleep Trophy 2024, India A vs India B, Day 4 Review: Collective bowling effort sets up India B win

When India B ended with a lead of 240 runs at the end of Day 3, one coud have said they had an upper hand in the first round fixture against India A at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. However, India A bowlers made use of the overcast conditions and the patches of live grass to good effect in the morning session to tilt things their way.

The first batter to fall was Sai Kishore, who was yet again dismissed by nicking one behind, this time to Dhruv Jurel, as he was sent back for a nine-ball duck. Yash Dayal was the last batter to get dismissed after he struck four boundaries in his nine-ball stay. His dismissal came after Akash Deep dismissed Navdeep Saini, providing Jurel his seventh catch of the innings and securing his fifth five-wicket haul in first-class.

India A were set a target of 275 with 78 overs, making for an intriguing day to follow. The opening stand didn't last long like the first innings as Mayank Agarwal departed with Nitish Kumar Reddy snagging a wonderful reflex catch at second slip.

Riyan Parag took charge and played some fiery shots in an enterprising innings, but he was eventually cut short by Yash Dayal. The passion in Dayal's celebration conveyed how much the dismissal meant for him and the team. Meanwhile, Gill didn't last long as Saini had the last laugh a few overs later. Jurel copped a first-baller as India A were reduced to 76/4 going into Lunch. 

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They plummeted further after Tanush Kotian was dismissed after Lunch as a loose drive on the up went as an edge for Pant to gobble behind the stumps. Shivam Dube promised with yet another start but was dismissed after closing the face of the bat a bit too early to lob a catch to short-cover. Despite taking a couple of blows to the body, Kuldeep Yadav held his own in a partnership which saw Rahul farm the strike for most of the stand before Tea.

Desperate to break the partnership, Abhimanyu Easwaran introduced Yashasvi Jaiswal and Kishore into the attack, although for only an over apiece. Unlike the first innings, when Rahul looked scratchy, he looked assured this time around. He brought up his 33rd fifty a couple of overs before Tea with 143 needed.

It seemed only a matter of time that India A's innings would come to a close after Rahul was outdone by an off-cutter from Mukesh Kumar. However, it was Kuldeep's dogged resistance which kept India B waiting. Once Kuldeep was dismissed, it was Akash who took on the mantle upon himself by striking a few lusty blows. Kishore dropped Akash at deep square-leg but it did not hurt India B as Avesh got him dismissed the very next ball with a vicious bouncer.

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There seemed the slightest of possibilities that India A would hang on to salvage a draw. However, that was ruled out as Musheer Khan ran Akash out from short-leg to script a much-deserved victory for India B by a 76-run margin. The 19-year-old was awarded the Player of the Match for his surreal 181, and rightly so. 

The tournament now moves on to Anantapur, with this fixture being the only one to be played in Bengaluru. The victors and losers of the first round will respectively lock horns with each other with both the games being played from the same date in adjacent venues, slated to commence on September 12, 2024.