KL Rahul Falls For Single-Digit; Dhruv Jurel Slams A Valiant Knock In IND-A vs AUS-A 2nd Test
![Rahul failed, Jurel starred with the bat for India A [Source: @LordGod188/X, @ImTanujSingh/X]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1730950599330_Jurel_Rahul.jpg?im=Resize=(650,450))
Rahul failed, Jurel starred with the bat for India A [Source: @LordGod188/X, @ImTanujSingh/X]
Experienced batter KL Rahul had a horrendous start to the Australia tour as he was dismissed cheaply in India-A's second unofficial Test match against Australia-A at Melbourne Cricket Ground. Rahul was given a golden opportunity to prove his mettle as an opener ahead of the much-awaited Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia. However, the Karnataka batter couldn't live up to the hype, managing only four runs in the first innings.
KL Rahul Becomes Scott Boland's Victim
After Australia-A skipper Nathan McSweeney won the toss and opted to bowl first on a lively deck, Michael Neser wreaked havoc in the Indian camp, dismissing Abhimanyu Easwaran and the in-form Sai Sudharsan on consecutive deliveries in the very first over. As KL Rahul was joined by captain Ruturaj Gaikwad in the middle, the visitors set high hopes from the experienced batters, expecting them to bail India-A out of trouble.
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Coincidentally, both opened their accounts with boundaries, but failed to add another run to their tally. Rahul was the first one to go back, edging the ball to the wicketkeeper while trying to block an away-going delivery. Meanwhile, Gaikwad was dismissed as Neser's third victim, leaving India-A tottering at 11 for four at one stage.
Dhruv Jurel's Stunning Fifty Takes India Beyond 100-Run Mark
Despite wickets tumbling at one end, India-A's wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel kept his composure, slamming a magnificent fifty under tremendous pressure. He stitched a crucial 53-run stand with Devdutt Padikkal before adding another 39 runs alongside Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Riding on his exceptional innings, India-A managed to breach the 100-run mark in their first innings. At the time of writing, the visiting side was 138 for eight, with Jurel and Prasidh Krishna batting on 73* and 5*, respectively.
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