Bridgetown: A superb unbeaten 96 by skipper Cheteshwar Pujara has carried India A to an exciting two-wicket victory over West Indies A on a tense final day of the opening four-day ‘Test’ match here at Kensington Oval.
The highly-touted 24-year-old from Saurashtra batted all day, holding his nerve and the innings together, as the Indians reached the victory target in fading light, beating showers that had forced three stoppages during the day.
Pujara, who made a disciplined 50 in the first innings, engineered an unbeaten ninth-wicket stand of 73 with tail-ender Shami Ahmed, who batted for over two hours for 27 not out.
The pair joined forces with India almost dead and buried at 115 for eight.
Ahmed played the shot of the day, as he launched Holder over long-on for a massive six that signalled a shift in the momentum.
Pujara was watchful all day and never looked fazed as wickets tumbled around him in the first half of the day. He started the day without a run, having survived a torrid 23 minutes on the third evening but played himself in and gradually grew in confidence.
Pujara’s Man-of-the-Match innings bettered a Herculean spell of top-quality seam bowling by Jason Holder. The six-foot-seven-inch 20-year-old from Barbados ended with five for 55 from 27 accurate overs, as he took his fifth five-wicket haul in his 15th first-class match. (IANS)