Yashasvi Jaiswal returned to form with an unbeaten 155 as India A drew the second unofficial Test against New Zealand A in Christchurch on Tuesday, 3 November. The opener, who had been short of runs in recent matches, hit 15 fours and five sixes in a 162-ball innings that carried India A to safety on the final day.
Yashasvi Jaiswal shared an unbroken 247-run stand for the third wicket with Yash Rathod, who finished on 100 not out from 122 balls with nine fours. India A reached 282 for 2 in their second innings in 52.4 overs before the two captains shook hands, with the match ending just after Rathod completed his century.
The innings mattered for Yashasvi Jaiswal because it came ahead of the senior Test series against New Zealand, which begins in Wellington on 19 November. He is in India’s Test squad for that series, and a big score in Christchurch answered questions about his recent dip in form at the right time. The Times of India reported that Jaiswal spoke after the innings about process, routine and discipline, the habits he credited for his return to runs.
New Zealand A had scored 424 in their only innings of the match, after India A made 346 in their first innings. That left India A trailing by 78 runs when they batted again, and the draw depended on the top order holding firm on the final day. Yashasvi Jaiswal did that job with an innings that mixed patience early on with attacking shots once he was set.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and the Rathod stand in Christchurch
The third-wicket stand decided the match. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rathod came together with India A needing to bat out the day, and they stayed together until the close, adding 247 runs without being separated. Rathod, a left-hander from Vidarbha, reached his century in the closing stages, and the captains agreed to end the match once he had reached the mark.
The stand also showed the depth in India’s batting reserves. Rathod is one of the younger players pushing for higher honours, and a century against a New Zealand A attack in their home conditions is the kind of innings selectors note. For Jaiswal, the innings was a reminder of his ability to score quickly once he finds his rhythm, with five sixes in a four-day match innings that still lasted only 162 balls.
Brief scores: India A 346 and 282 for 2 in 52.4 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 155 not out, Yash Rathod 100 not out); New Zealand A 424.
Yashasvi Jaiswal ahead of the New Zealand Tests
The timing of the innings helps Yashasvi Jaiswal in two ways. It gives him runs before the senior series, and it gives the team management a recent reason to trust his form at the top of the order. India face New Zealand in two Tests, in Wellington from 19 November and in Christchurch from 27 November, and the conditions in Christchurch, where he has just scored heavily, will be familiar to him.
India A have used this tour to test players on the fringe of the senior side, and the drawn match in Christchurch followed a first unofficial Test in which India A’s batting had struggled. The contrast between the two matches is stark: where the earlier game exposed the batting, the second showed the same group digging in and finishing unbeaten.
For Jaiswal, the next step is to carry the Christchurch form into the senior series. He has already shown he can score big hundreds in Test cricket, and the 155 not out, made under the pressure of saving a match on the final day, is the kind of innings that tends to stay with a batter. India A leave Christchurch with the series shared, and Jaiswal leaves with his place at the top of the order in better shape than when he arrived.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and the India A batting picture
The draw also reflected well on the India A setup as a whole. The side batted twice in Christchurch and lost only two wickets in the second innings, after conceding a first-innings lead. That kind of resistance is what A tours are for, giving younger players time in the middle against bowlers they may face at senior level.
Rathod’s century was the other headline from the final day, and his 247-run stand with Yashasvi Jaiswal will be remembered as the partnership that saved the match. India A now move on from Christchurch with a drawn series and a set of performances that the selectors can weigh before the Wellington Test. The final word from the match belongs to the scorecard: 282 for 2, with both batters unbeaten, after New Zealand A had posted 424.