MYSORE, India – Barbadians Kirk Edwards and Kraigg Brathwaite missed out on centuries as the West Indies A ended the opening day of their first unofficial four-day cricket?Test against India A on 264 for five at the Gangothri Glades Cricket Ground.
Captain Edwards fell for 91 and Brathwaite for 92 as India A hit back with quick late strikes after the pair had put the visitors in a strong position.
Edwards and Brathwaite, both seeking recalls to the West Indies’ senior team for the two-match Test series against India in November, kept India A’s bowlers at bay for almost two sessions with a 172-run second-wicket partnership.
The pair, who both represent CounterPoint Wanderers in the Barbados Cricket Association’s competitions, linked up in the third over at the loss of opener Kieran Powell, who was dismissed by Mohammad Shami for a “duck”, after West Indies were sent in.
Edwards, who has scored two hundreds in nine Tests, was the dominant partner in the stand, hitting 11 fours and a six off 162 balls in his innings but departed, nine short of an eighth first-class century, to Ishwar Pandey.
“Obviously I am disappointed,” Edwards said. “It would have been nice for me and Kraigg to get a century because we did all the hard work but it was not to be.
You have to just accept it and move on.”
“The pitch was a bit spongy in the beginning so it required a bit more patience. We had to get ourselves in and see that phase out,” he said in explaining their patient approach before the partnership blossomed.
His dismissal allowed India A a chance to claw their way back into the game as 20-year-old Brathwaite, who faced 215 balls and hit 12 fours, was dismissed 11 overs later by off-spinner Parvez Rasool.
West Indies A slipped from 175 for one to 237 for five, losing left-handers Narsingh Deonarine and Leon Johnson for 28 and 10 respectively.
But a patient Assad Fudadin, who made four runs off 65 balls, and Chadwick Walton, who was more enterprising with 26 not out off 32 balls with four fours and a six, batted through for the rest of the day.
Meanwhile, experienced 31-year-old fast bowler Fidel Edwards will replace injured left-arm pacer Sheldon Cotterell in the West Indies A squad.
Cotterell was forced to pull out of the A team tour after suffering from pain in his left knee.
“It was a devastating blow when we found out that Sheldon was injured and could not play. He is one of the most promising quick bowlers we have in the West Indies,” team manager Lockhart Sebastien said.
Cotterrell was named in both the limited-overs and four-day squads but did not play any of the three One-day matches or the one-off Twenty20.
(CMC/EZS)
