India-A's incredible comeback in the first unofficial Test against New Zealand-A ended without a winner on Tuesday, October 27, after bad light brought the contest to a premature close in Lincoln. New Zealand-A were left with one wicket in hand after Akash Deep struck in the final session, but their last-wicket pair held firm for nearly 10 overs before fading light stopped play.
The first threat of bad light had come earlier in the final session, when India were closing in on victory. With the umpires warning that the batters would have to leave the field if India continued with pace bowling, captain Dhruv Jurel turned to fast bowler Mukesh Choudhary to bowl spin, helping keep the match alive. The contest for the final two wickets became a battle against the light and New Zealand's resistance. India had recovered from being bowled out for 113 in their first innings to set the hosts a target of 313, only to see their hopes of completing a remarkable turnaround fade as the final wicket partnership held firm.
India-A had spent much of the first two days struggling to find their feet on a greenish surface that offered plenty of assistance to the fast bowlers. New Zealand-A capitalised, scoring 317 to take a commanding 204-run lead. India's second innings began just as badly when KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal fell within the first five overs, leaving the visitors staring at another collapse.
Instead, Devdutt Padikkal and Sai Sudharsan began to turn the match around by adding 215 runs for a commanding partnership. Sudharsan, returning to the red-ball setup after injury, anchored the recovery with a composed 91. Padikkal went a step further, scoring 199 before falling to a contentious umpiring decision.
With New Zealand's first-innings advantage wiped out, the rest of India's batting order contributed significantly. Yash Rathod and Washington Sundar struck important half-centuries, while late cameos from Auqib Nabi and Akash Deep pushed India-A to 516 in their second innings, setting a target of 313 for the hosts.
India's bowlers put New Zealand-A under intense pressure during the chase. Auqib Nabi led the charge by attacking the stumps, including a clean bowled dismissal of left-hander Matthew Boyle. Akash Deep and Anshul Kamboj also kept the pressure on the batters, with Kamboj frequently beating the outside edge by bowling around the wicket to right-handers.
Curtis Heaphy anchored New Zealand's chase, opening the innings and remaining unbeaten on 90 from 187 balls. His resistance became crucial after Akash Deep dismissed Simon Keene, whose stumps were shattered by an in-swinger while batting through a hamstring injury. This left New Zealand-A with just one wicket remaining.
India needed only one more breakthrough, but Heaphy and Jayden Lennox successfully resisted for nearly 10 overs. Luck ultimately went against India when bad light stopped play with 17 overs remaining in the day. The umpires halted the match due to poor light and cold winds, and players remained off the field as the contest concluded in a draw.