India A were handed a heavy defeat in the second unofficial ODI against Australia A in Kanpur as the visitors cruised to a nine-wicket win under the DLS method to square the series 1-1. On a day when the Indian batting lineup faltered badly, Tilak Varma stood tall with a composed 94, but his lone effort was not enough to carry the team to safety. Varma continued from where he left off in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan, batting under pressure.
Put into bat, the hosts never quite got going. Abhishek Sharma, playing in place of Priyansh Arya, fell for a golden duck in the second over. Skipper Shreyas Iyer and opener Prabhsimran Singh followed soon after, leaving India reeling at 17 for 3. Tilak and Riyan Parag stitched a much-needed stand of 101 runs, with Parag’s brisk 58 injecting momentum. But once Will Sutherland broke through, the middle order caved in again.
Tilak tried to hold the innings together, finding brief support from Harshit Rana (21), Ravi Bishnoi (26), and Arshdeep Singh (10*). Skipper Jack Edwards proved too hot to handle, returning with 4 for 56 to wrap up India for 246 inside 46 overs. Tilak (94) fell agonisingly short of his century.
Australia A batters make light work of chase
Persistent rain interrupted Australia’s reply after just 5.5 overs, reducing their target to 160 from 25 overs. That equation played straight into the visitors’ hands. Jake Fraser-McGurk launched the chase with a quickfire 36 off 20 before Nishant Sindhu dismissed him. From there, Mackenzie Harvey and Cooper Connolly turned the contest into a one-sided affair.
The pair dismantled India’s bowling, hammering 103 runs in just 59 balls. Harvey finished unbeaten on 70 off 49, while Connolly raced to 50 off 31. Their attacking stroke play left the hosts with no answers as Australia sealed victory with more than eight overs to spare.
With the series now level, Shreyas Iyer’s men will need to regroup quickly if they want to bounce back in the final clash at Green Park.
