India A endured a difficult start to the first unofficial Test against New Zealand A in Lincoln, losing four wickets for just 55 runs during the opening session on Day 1. India Test vice-captain KL Rahul, promising left-hander B Sai Sudharsan and captain Dhruv Jurel all failed to make an impact with the bat, while Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed for 17.
New Zealand A captain Rhys Mariu won the toss on Saturday and elected to bowl first, a decision that paid immediate dividends as the hosts’ bowlers put India A under pressure. Fraser Sheat, Zak Gibson and Simon Keene made early breakthroughs to leave the visitors struggling before lunch.
KL Rahul, who is part of India’s Test leadership group, had a disappointing outing at the crease. The right-handed batter faced eight deliveries without scoring before Fraser Sheat dismissed him on the third ball of the third over. Wicketkeeper Mitchell Hay completed the catch behind the stumps, handing New Zealand A an early breakthrough.
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Yashasvi Jaiswal and Devdutt Padikkal attempted to steady the innings after Rahul’s departure. The pair added 30 runs for the second wicket from 71 deliveries, offering India A some stability. However, Jaiswal’s innings ended on 17 when he was caught by Matthew Boyle off Zak Gibson’s bowling in the 15th over.
India A fully up against it in their warm up match prior the Test Series in New Zealand
They sit at 54/4 with some great bowling by Keene to dismiss the Indian Batsman
Padikkal the only player to really get going for India currently 32* off 75 balls
A sign of things to come for India in the upcoming weeks?
— JN Sport (@JNSports1) October 24, 2026
Sai Sudharsan, batting at No. 4, departed next. The Tamil Nadu batter, who missed India’s Test series in Sri Lanka due to injury, failed to make an impact after Simon Keene bowled him in the 20th over. Keene struck again soon afterwards, dismissing India A captain Dhruv Jurel for just one run off 13 balls. Jurel was caught by Mariu, leaving India A four wickets down in the morning session.
Amid the early collapse, Devdutt Padikkal stood firm at the crease and emerged as India A’s most dependable batter. The left-hander from Karnataka remained unbeaten on 32 off 76 deliveries at lunch, striking five boundaries to keep the innings moving.
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Padikkal had previously impressed with two centuries against Sri Lanka in August, and his composed approach was particularly valuable as wickets fell at the other end. Yash Rathod was unbeaten on one off 14 balls when the first session ended. India A finished the opening session at 55/4 after 28 overs, leaving the visitors with significant work to do in the remainder of the match. Washington Sundar, Anshul Kamboj and Akash Deep are among the other India Test players included in India A’s playing XI for the ongoing unofficial Test.
