Sooryavanshi's stunning onslaught powers India A to tri-series triumph

After a subdued series by his standards, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi lit up the final of the tri-nation 'A' series, headlining India A's 66-run victory over Sri Lanka A in Dambulla.

Asked to bat first, Sooryavanshi smashed the fastest List A half-century, taking just 11 balls. He plundered 26 runs off one over from Mohamed Shiraz, taking India A to 50 in three overs. His first 54 runs came entirely in boundaries, and though he was dropped twice, he made Sri Lanka A pay.

Sooryavanshi fell for 94 off 29 balls (11 fours, 8 sixes) in the 9th over with India A at 132. Ruturaj Gaikwad and captain Tilak Varma shared 84 runs before Gaikwad fell for 40. Tilak brought up his fourth fifty of the series (70 balls) but couldn't convert. Kumar Kushagra chipped in with 36, and Anukul Roy's explosive 15-ball 39, including three sixes in the final over, powered India A to 377/9.

Sri Lanka A's chase started with Niroshan Dickwella (25), but Yash Thakur's three wickets pegged them back. Sadeera Samarawickrama (52 off 41) kept them in the hunt before Ashok Sharma had him caught behind. Wanuja Sahan (62 off 69) and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth (39 off 34) added 77 runs, but the required rate proved too steep. Vipraj Nigam (3-60) and Anukul Roy (2-42) wrapped things up as Sri Lanka A were bowled out for 311 in 47.1 overs.

Brief Scores: India A 377/9 in 50 overs (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 94, Tilak Varma 67, Anukul Roy 39; Wanuja Sahan 2-39) beat Sri Lanka A 311 in 47.1 overs (Wanuja Sahan 62, Sadeera Samarawickrama 52; Yash Thakur 3-45, Vipraj Nigam 3-60) by 66 runs.