NEW DELHI: Shreyas Iyer‘s struggles continued under pressure, but strong batting from his teammates, including Sanju Samson, helped India D reach 306 for five on the first day of their Duleep Trophy match against India B in Anantapur.
Iyer, hoping for a return to India’s Test squad, was dismissed for a second consecutive duck in the tournament.
Meanwhile, Devdutt Padikkal (50), Srikar Bharat (52), Ricky Bhui (56), and Samson (89 not out) all scored half-centuries, showcasing India D’s batting depth.
By stumps, Samson and Saransh Jain (26) were still at the crease.
For India B, leg-spinner Rahul Chahar impressed with figures of 3/60, while Mukesh Kumar (1/37) and Navdeep Saini (1/51) each took a wicket. India B had won the toss and chose to bowl first at the Rural Development Trust Stadium.
Padikkal and Bharat began with a strong 105-run opening partnership. Saini provided the breakthrough by dismissing Padikkal, and Mukesh Kumar soon followed by getting Bharat out, with both catches taken by wicketkeeper Narayan Jagadeesan.
After their dismissals, Nishant Sindhu managed just 19 runs before being out. Iyer’s wicket, taken by Chahar, left India D at 175 for four, slowing down their progress.
Bhui anchored the innings next, adding 41 runs with Samson to push the team past 200. However, Chahar struck again and dismissed Bhui, reducing India D to 216 for five.
Samson continued his aggressive play, hitting 10 fours and three sixes in his 83-ball innings, keeping India D on track.
Samson and Jain added an unbeaten 90 runs to close the day on a high.
It was another tough day for Iyer, who joined the play with India D at a promising 172/3 but couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity.
Iyer has accumulated just 104 runs in five innings (9, 54, 0, 41, 0), averaging a modest 20.80 in the tournament.
With Iyer being left out of the squad for the first Test against Bangladesh, his prospects for selection in the upcoming series in Australia or the home series against New Zealand remain bleak.
Brief Scores: India D: 306 for five in 77 overs (Sanju Samson 89 not out, Devdutt Padikkal 50, Srikar Bharat 52, Ricky Bhui 56; Rahul Chahar 3/60) vs India B.