Tri Series: England Lions vs India A, 1st Match: Hosts Thrash Men in Blue to Start off on a Winning Note

England A registered a thumping victory against India A in the 1^st match of the tri-nation series at the County Ground in Derby to begin the tournament on a winning note. It was a good all-round performance by England which saw them overcome a below-par performance from the Men in Blue. Nick Gubbins was the star for England as he smashed an unbeaten 128 of 132 deliveries to seal the deal for the home team.

It was India A skipper Shreyas Iyer who won the toss and opted to bat. Tom Helm bagged the wicket of inform Prithvi Shaw. Mayank Agarwal also receded back to the pavilion in quick time. India A kept losing wickets at regular intervals which never really allowed them to press on the accelerator. Shubhman Gill scored 37 while skipper Shreyas Iyer chipped in with a useful 42.

It was a great knock from Rishabh Pant which gave India A some respectability in the middle. The southpaw who has looked in good touch all through the season smashed his way to 64 of 55 deliveries which included 7 fours and a couple of sixes. The English bowlers bowled brilliantly towards the death and never allowed India to get after the bowlers.

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They were eventually skittled out for a meagre score of 232 in just the 47^th over. For the hosts, Liam Dawson was the pick of the bowlers finishing with impressive figures of 4/30 in his 10 overs spell. England lost Tom Kohler-Cadmore in just the 4^th over. It was Shardul Thakur who wrapped him right in front with an inswinging delivery.

From there on it was a roller coaster ride for the hosts. Nick Gubbins and Sam Hain shared a 134 runs partnership for the 2^nd wicket and the match was almost pocketed by then. Both played quite sensibly and played the big shots whenever the required rate went up more than 5.50. Gubbins, in particular, looked in great touch and smashed a brilliant century.

Hain was dismissed in the 28^th over with the score on 149. Liam Livingstone chipped in with a well composed 27 as England Lions chased the total down with 8.1 overs to spare. It was a thumping win and India needs to come back strongly in their next match against the Windies. For India Shardul Thakur bagged a couple of wickets.

Brief Scores

India A 232 all-out in 46.3 overs (Rishabh Pant 64, Shreyas Iyer 40, Liam Dawson 4/30)

England A 236/3 in 41.5 overs (Nick Gubbins 128*, Sam Hain 54, Shardul Thakur 2/30)

England A won by 7 wickets (with 49 deliveries to spare)

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