Brathwaite slams ton in drawn A match

Expectedly, the four-day match between touring West Indies A and India A ended in a tame draw with the visitors spending the final day gaining some batting practice as opener Kraigg Brathwaite (104 not out) and Narsingh Deonarine (93) helped themselves to some useful runs.

The West Indies, who go into the third and final match of the series in Hubli next week leading 1-0, began the last day on 28 for no loss after having gained a first innings lead of 47 runs and seemed content to bat through the day with no result possible.

Brathwaite, who had made 82 in the first innings, carried on to score a century to complete a fine match for himself while Deonarine kept him company for 144 runs for the third wicket after the early dismissals of Kieran Powell (14) and Kirk Edwards (2).

Veteran seamer Zaheer Khan, returning to competitive cricket after an injury-induced layoff, failed to make an impact on the game, coming away with a wicket apiece in each innings in contrast to 23-year old left-arm spinner who had a match haul of nine wickets, including two in the second innings.

Besides Zaheer Khan, other major stars, Gautam Gambhir (11), skipper Cheteshwar Pujara (25) and Virender Sehwag (7) all failed with the bat as the Windies extended their domination.

Brief scores:

West Indies 'A' 406 all out and 223 for 3 in 81 overs (Kraigg Brathwaite 104 not out, Narsingh Deonarine 93, Bhargav Bhatt 2 for 104) drew with India 'A' 359 all out.