India A vs Australia A, Day 3: Wildermuth, McDermott centuries help hosts draw pink-ball warm-up Test

Wildermuth (107* off 167 balls) and Wildermuth (111* off 119 balls) stitched a partnership of unbeaten 265 runs for the fifth wicket and helped Australia A scored 307-4 at stumps on Day 3 of the practice game at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

Openers Marcus Harris (5) and Joe Burns (1) once again failed to perform with the bat as in-form Mohammed Shami dismissed the duo early on in the innings. Australia A lost their openers at a score of 11. Nic Maddinson (14) too didn’t last long as he was dismissed by Mohammed Siraj. Captain Alex Carey showed some resistance with the bat and scored 58 off 111 but he was removed by part-time spinner Hanuma Vihari.

India A vs Australia A, 2nd Practice: Rishabh Pant, Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill stake claim for Test berths

Shami (2-58) was the pick of the bowlers for India A in the second innings while Siraj (1-54) and Hanuma Vihari (1-14) also grabbed a wicket each. Pacers Navdeep Saini and Jasprit Bumrah remained wicketless on day three. Captain Ajinkya Rahane declared India A’s second innings at the overnight score and gave full 90 overs for his bowlers to get 10 wickets on the final day. But Wildermuth and McDermott toiled the Indian bowlers in the second and third session.

Earlier on day 2, Rishabh Pant and Hanuma Vihari put themselves in the reckoning for next week’s first Test with contrasting hundreds as India thoroughly dominated Australia A.

Needing 19 runs to reach his century when Jack Wildermuth commenced the second evening’s final over, Pant clobbered him for 4, 4, 6, 4, 4, to remain unbeaten on a blistering 103 off only 73 balls. Overall, he hit nine fours and six sixes.

At the other end, Vihari laboured his way to a fine 104-run knock off 194 balls. Also staking a claim for selection is young Shubman Gill, with an elegant 65 off 78 balls and 10 sweetly-timed boundaries. In the final session of play, Pant’s aggressive approach paid dividends as he smashed the Australia A bowlers to all corners of the SCG, the southpaw making a strong case for himself for the wicketkeeper’s job in Adelaide ahead of Test specialist Wriddhiman Saha.

At the close of play on Day 2, India were strongly placed at 386 for four for an overall lead by 472 runs, having bundled the home team out for a paltry 108 in their first innings on Friday.