CricketViewer.com

[tag]Abu Dhabi[/tag] is not an ideal venue to play cricket given it is peak summer here and even for locals this is the time to indulge in indoor sports. Therefore, bat first or field first, cricket could be a tiring effort.

In conditions as demanding as these, if there was one thing that remained the way it had to be, it was the crowd support that ensured its lively presence to watch the one-day match between India ‘A’ and Pakistan ‘A’ in the ongoing Eurasia Cup, here.

To the excitement of this motley crowd that watched the proceedings, India ‘A’ defeated archrivals Pakistan ‘A’ by 34 runs. “It was a brief scare but we knew we had latched on to it”, India ‘A’ captain Y Venugopala Rao said after Taufeeq Umar gave Pakistan a solid start. In the end, with eight overs to go and two wickets in hand, Pakistan ‘A’ were facing a daunting 10 runs per over before they finally gave away.

Earlier in the day, openers Shikhar Dhawan and Robin Utthappa gave India yet another solid start with a 100-run stand that set the platform for middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma to prosper on. Sharma providing the icing on the cake with a 71-ball 62 that helped his side reach 269 runs for the loss of six wickets.

Sharma lit up the evening for his team with some unconventional batting display.

“It wasn’t easy scoring out there. The ball never came on to the bat. One had to keep waiting for his chances, whenever they came,” Sharma said after his innings, even as he kept pursing his lips to rid himself of the dryness that this weather brings along.

The Pakistani bowlers struggled to get along despite the variety in the attack. Things weren’t different when the time came for India ‘A’ to defend their total. From RP Singh to VRV Singh and even leg-spinner Piyush Chawla were reprimanded for some lackadaisical display on a track that wasn’t helpful. To the contrary, the Pakistanis only helped by some avoidable stroke play that helped India’s cause.

Source:Yahoo! Sports

Capture the Conversation tells you what people are saying right now!

Share on Twitter | StumbleUpon | Del.icio.us | Digg | Facebook