05 September,2016 08:35 AM IST | | Gaurav Joshi
A well composed 95 from opener Mandeep Singh and Manish Pandey's 61 propelled India to 266 for four in 50 overs before Yuzvendra Chahal spun a web around the Aussie middle order to end with impressive figures of 4-34
Sydney: India 'A' beat Australia 'A' by 57 runs to win the Quadrangular one-day series in Mackay yesterday.
India 'A' players celebrate with the Quadrangular winner's trophy after their 57-run win over Australia 'A' in Mackay yesterday. Pics/Getty Images
A well composed 95 from opener Mandeep Singh and Manish Pandey's 61 propelled India to 266 for four in the alloted 50 overs before Yuzvendra Chahal spun a web around the Aussie middle order to end with impressive figures of 4-34. The hosts were bowled out for 209 in 44.5 overs.
Mumbai pacer Dhawal Kulkarni (2-22), Karun Nair (2-29) and Axar Patel (2-33) chipped in.
Earlier, Mandeep shared a 81-run stand off 108 balls with Shreyas Iyer (41) for the second wicket before adding 87 for the third wicket with skipper Pandey.
India A's Mandeep Singh en route his 95 vs Australia 'A'
Captain Peter Handscomb (43) was the top run-scorer for hosts while Cameron Bancroft and Alex Ross scored 34 each.
Man of the match, Mandeep revealed how India 'A' coach, Rahul Dravid relaxed the team ahead of the final by telling the players to be calm and not try 'too hard'.
Commenting on his match-winning innings, Mandeep said, "It is very satisfying to get a big score. I'm delighted how I constructed my innings. It is a big ground and to build a score here you need to run plenty of twos and threes. I felt I did that really well today. Normally in India, the boundaries are short so we are not used to playing in this manner all the time."
Leggie Yuzvendra Chahal (right) celebrates the wicket of Australian Kane Richardson with wicketkeeper Sanju Samson yesterday
While the celebrations were not over the top, a member of the support staff told mid-day that Dravid was extremely impressed by the way the team had gelled as the tournament progressed.
"The part that impressed the coach was the fact that each single player contributed at various stages in the tournament. Like today, Karun Nair only managed one run but picked up two crucial wickets. After an unhappy tour leading up to the final, Mandeep Singh stood out in the final."
Dravid was also thrilled by the way the team had rebounded after being skittled for mere a 55 in their opening match.
Yesterday, he asked his players to soak in the win and continue their form in the four-day matches starting in Brisbane on Thursday.
