Sri Lanka A vs India A Highlights:An absolute grandstand finish at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium saw the fourth match of the One-Day Tri-Nation A-Series between India A and Sri Lanka A end in a spectacular tie, with both teams locked on exactly 265 runs before the hosts eventually clinched a dramatic victory in a high-friction Super Over.
The Super Over Drama
With the scores tied at 265 after 100 overs of exhausting play, the two teams headed into a historic Super Over. Arshad Khan took the ball for India A but struggled with his lines, conceding a wide alongside continuous runs to Sri Lanka’s Sahan Arachchige and Avishka Fernando.
The turning point occurred on the final delivery when Fernando hammered a high full toss for six. Following a heated discussion on the field, the third umpire explicitly judged the ball to be a waist-high no-ball. The structural mistake set India A a massive target of 18 runs to win.
India’s top order fell significantly short during their chase, managing only 10 runs off the six deliveries. Teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi struck 6 runs off three balls, but the clinical Sri Lankan death-overs execution ensured the hosts walked away with the crucial points.
Shedge and Nigam Construct Epic Rescue
Earlier in the day, India A looked destined for an incredibly embarrassing batting collapse after being put in to bat on a sticky Dambulla track. The top order crumbled completely under pressure, with openers Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (21) and Prabhsimran Singh (11) departing early before Ruturaj Gaikwad (37) and captain Tilak Varma (23) fell to Sri Lanka’s spin twins, Mohamed Shiraz and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.
Slumping to a precarious 143/7, India A found its saviours in Mumbai’s Suryansh Shedge and Uttar Pradesh’s Vipraj Nigam. The duo put together a phenomenal, counter-attacking 104-run partnership for the eighth wicket. Shedge anchored the rescue with a brilliant 72 off 66 balls, while Nigam chipped in with a vital 51 off 49 balls to drag India A up to a fighting total of 265 all out in 49.2 overs.
The Disciplinary 10-Run Penalty
A highly unusual administrative talking point occurred right at the conclusion of India’s innings. The team was handed a massive 10-run discipline penalty after Vipraj Nigam was repeatedly caught running down the protected area of the pitch during his batting stint.
As a direct consequence of the penalty rules, Sri Lanka A was uniquely allowed to begin their second-innings run chase with a scoreboard reading 10/0 before a single delivery was bowled by the visitors.
Samarawickrama Anchors The Frantic Chase
Sri Lanka A initiated their response aggressively, crossing the 50-run mark inside the first five overs thanks to explosive cameos from Niroshan Dickwella (37) and Avishka Fernando (22). However, Ayush Badoni (2/26) and Vipraj Nigam struck back in the middle overs to trigger a heavy collapse, reducing the hosts to 143/5.
Sadeera Samarawickrama then took absolute charge of the match, playing a flawless anchoring knock to keep the chase alive. Despite struggling with severe physical cramps late in his innings, Samarawickrama pushed into the 90s, guiding the score closer to the target alongside the lower order.
With Sri Lanka A requiring 5 runs from the final over, Arshad Khan bowled absolute magic, cleaning up Samarawickrama for a magnificent 93 to trigger extreme tension on the field. The tailenders scrambled desperately on the final delivery to match India’s total exactly on 265, blowing the tri-series points table completely wide open.
