After the 55-run loss in the second unofficial one-day game against the West Indies ‘A’ team here on Tuesday, India ‘A’ will surely be looking at a better batting show in the third match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Thursday, says a report in DNA.
“India ‘A’ scored a dominating win in the first unofficial one-day match here on Sunday. But the second match proved that a little bit of application and clever bowling strategy can win you games, even against a solid batting lineup that the hosts have with the likes of Yuvraj, Yusuf Pathan, Mandeep Singh, Unmukt Chand and others in the team. But there is no doubt about the fact that the team will once again rely heavily on Yuvraj Singh to deliver. He had scored 123 in the first match but could get only 40 in the second,” says the report, adding that it would not be fair to attribute the loss in the second game only due to the hosts not getting enough partnerships going.
“The India ‘A’ team perhaps did not capitalise on the initial inroads given by R Vinay Kumar, and that too on a pitch that was aiding some lateral movement. The West Indians did that better and were smiling at the end of the day. Another concern in the second match was that of the Indian fielding, which looked amateurish at times on Tuesday. By Yuvraj’s own admission after the match, they should have given away about 20 runs less,” adds the report.
Meanwhile, The Times Of India reports that with the one-day series evenly poised at 1-1, Yuvraj Singh's India 'A' will have to regroup and sort out their frailties as they go into the decider against a charged-up West Indies 'A' at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Thursday.
“A series win is what the hosts are hoping for before they turn their attention to the one-off T20 and three unofficial Test matches to be staged in three venues across Karnataka. Besides wrapping up the series, the third One-dayer will serve as the last opportunity for players to show some character before the selectors name the national squad for the upcoming high-profile seven-match ODI series against Australia, starting next month,” says the report, adding that Yuvraj Singh, who smashed a fiery 89-ball 123 and 58-ball 40, has been the only bright spot in the series for India in an otherwise out-of-form batting line-up.
“Yusuf Pathan, after impressing with a quick-fire 32-ball 70 and two wickets in the opener, came a cropper in the second outing. Pathan, who last figured in the India team at the Asia Cup in March 2012, will be eager to return to his scoring ways on Thursday to bolster his comeback bid,” says the report.
According to a report in Deccan Chronicle, what will be worrying Yuvraj is the opening pair of Robin Uthappa and Unmukt Chand failing to consolidate on the starts. “Uthappa, who scored a century against New Zealand 'A' in Visakhapatnam last week, struggled in the two matches against the Caribbeans. In the middle-order, Mandeep Singh too has been shaky after showing good promise in the opener, crumbling at a stage when a solid stand was expected. The other area the hosts will look to work on is their fielding,” says the report.
“West Indies are gung-ho going into the decider, having crushed the hosts by 55 runs in the second match on Tuesday. What will give them confidence is the resilience they showed in levelling the series after a 77-run defeat in the first One-dayer,” adds the report.