The heat and fire of losing a game in international cricket, singed Indian teen sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after he got dragged into an acrimonious spat post India A’s defeat to Sri Lanka A.
Indian duo of Suryansh Shedge and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi were seen provoked by the Sri Lankan fielding pack after losing the Tri Nation A game. After a verbal spat, Lankan Vishen Halambage seemed to taunt and charge towards Shedge, while another jostled with him. Sooryavanshi was then seen pushing Halambage back with his left hand, before Niroshan Dickewella intervened to pull them apart. Amidst fiery scenes, the Super Over saw India score 9 and lose by 7 runs, with a target of 17.
Fading light and tensed scenes after a couple of controversial calls from the umpires, had preceded Sri Lanka A pulling off a thrilling win as India managed 2, 0, 1, 2, 4, 0, after Sooryavanshi swung and missed a yorker from Kugathas Mathulan.
In the Super Over after scores tied at 265, India’s frustrations had merit, but not their confrontation with the umpires and Sri Lankans. The first was for a wide delivery when Sahan Arachchige had moved across and an Arshad Khan yorker missed the leg-stump by a whisker. Then came what was supposed to be the last delivery.
Avishka Fernando had ended up skying a high full-toss, which was referred to the third umpire. With the height-tracker not available, under the available evidence it was deemed above waist-high – which was contentious, but India had left the field already. Emotions ran high, but 17 runs was too steep to chase for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Shedge.
With the 50-over game ending in a tie, the umpires had hesitated to proceed with a Super Over, citing the fading light, which left India incensed. But once Sri Lanka agreed, the drama went on as the hosts put on 16 runs before India fell seven short of the score. For India to go through to the final, they now need Afghanistan to lose both their remaining fixtures.
This was a game that India had no business to drag till the Super Over, given how their top-order collapsed again. Instead, thanks to some ordinary cricket from both sides, the game tilted back and forth with none ready to pounce on the opportunities to close it out. Once Suryansh Shedge (72 off 66) – the find of the series – and Vipraj Nigam (51 off 49) led a commendable fight back and lifted them to 265 from a teetering 143/7, India were back in the game.
However, after Sri Lanka’s top three got them off to a flying start, India once again appeared listless with the ball, turning to part-timers in the powerplay. Instead, like they did in the previous match, once the field spread out through the spinners, India made a strong comeback, with Sadeera Samarawickrama (93) fighting the lone battle. In the last two overs, pacers Yash Thakur and Arshad Khan bowled a series of yorkers to deny Sri Lanka a win, with a boundary in the penultimate over being the difference.
Shedge-hammer
Not even half-way into their innings, Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ayush Badoni were all back in the pavilion. All casualties of soft dismissals.
While the big names have searched for consistency on the trip, Shedge has stood out. A hard-hitting all-rounder, Shedge has been vital to Mumbai’s white-ball squads in the last couple of years. He has been fast-tracked into the India A set-up thanks to his ability to bowl medium pace and be a good back-up option beyond Hardik Pandya and Nitish Kumar Reddy. When the 23-year-old walked out in the 25th over, India were collapsing with Sri Lanka spinners, in particular leg-spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth’s variations hard to pick.
But Shedge seamlessly settled in and though Anukul Roy departed a little later, in Vipraj he found a steady partner. The two during the course of their 104-run stand for the eighth wicket, did what was precisely needed on the surface. They picked the gaps, waited patiently for the gifts to arrive and once they got a hang of the pitch, ensured Sri Lanka paid the price.
Defending 265, India didn’t take wickets early with the new ball as Sri Lanka innings began with 10 runs added as penalty thanks to Nigam venturing on to dangerous areas of the pitch while running. With runs against new ball being key, Niroshan Dickwella, Fernando and Vishen Halambage gave the hosts a rapid start before India pulled them back with constant strikes. Samarawickrama, though, batted exceptionally again. But once again failed to close out the game despite being the set batsman.
Brief scores: India 265 in 49.2 ovs (Suryansh Shedge 72, Vipraj Nigam 51; Vijayakanth Viyaskanth 3/26, Mohamed Shiraz 3/33) tied with Sri Lanka 265/9 in 50 ovs (Sadeera Samarawickrama 93; Ayush Badoni 2/45). Super Over: Sri Lanka 16/0 bt India 9/0.
Indian duo of Suryansh Shedge and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi were seen provoked by the Sri Lankan fielding pack after losing the Tri Nation A game (Screengrabs: X) 
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