Sudharsan century, Padikkal 94* lead India A's strong reply in Galle

India A reached a commanding 247/1, powered by Sai Sudharsan's unbeaten 104 and Devdutt Padikkal's 94*, at Stumps on Day 2 of the second Unofficial Test against Sri Lanka A in Galle. Resuming with five wickets in hand, Sri Lanka A could add only 78 runs before being bowled out for 366. Sudharsan and Padikkal then stitched together an unbroken 181-run stand to trim the deficit to 119 by the close.

Resuming on 288/5, Sri Lanka A suffered an early blow when Chamika Gunasekera fell to Gurnoor Brar in the sixth over of the day. Captain Sahan Arachchige, however, continued confidently and brought up his hundred two overs later. India A did not have to wait long for another breakthrough, with Saransh Jain dismissing Keshara Nuwantha in the 97th over.

While Dilum Sudeera and Arachchige added 38 runs for the eighth wicket, Sri Lanka A lost their last three wickets in the space of 12 deliveries. Jain broke the stand by dismissing Sudeera before Brar bowled both Arachchige and Asanka Manoj in the following over. Lunch was taken with Sri Lanka A all out for 366.

India A responded positively, with the openers scoring freely and finding boundaries at regular intervals. Their opening stand of 66 ended in the 14th over when Nuwantha dismissed Aman Mokhade. There was little respite for Sri Lanka A thereafter as Sudharsan and Padikkal settled in quickly, taking India A to 111/1 at Tea.

Sri Lanka A found no breakthrough in the final session as the two left-handers batted with complete control. Sudharsan reached his fifty in the 30th over, while Padikkal brought up his in the 39th. The partnership soon crossed the 100-run mark and continued to frustrate the hosts. Sudharsan completed his century in the 56th over, while Padikkal remained unbeaten on 94 at stumps.

Brief Scores: Sri Lanka A 366 all out (Sahan Arachchige 127; Gurnoor Brar 4-77, Saransh Jain 4-92) lead India A 247/1 (Sai Sudharsan 104*, Devdutt Padikkal 94*; Keshara Nuwantha 1-63) by 119 runs.