India A Women Post 351/9 on Day 1 Against Australia A in Mohali

India A Women overcame a mid-innings collapse to post 351 for nine on the opening day of their four-day unofficial Test against Australia A Women at the PCA IS Bindra Stadium here on Tuesday.

After winning the toss and opting to bat, India A made a strong start through Shubha Satheesh and Priya Punia, who added 102 runs for the opening wicket. Shubha scored 59 off 117 balls, including 10 fours, while Punia made 46 off 65 deliveries.

Australia A, however, struck back after Punia’s dismissal. The visitors removed Yastika Bhatia (5), Shubha and Tejal Hasabnis (2) in a short period, reducing India A to 120 for four.

Anushka Sharma then steadied the innings with Tanisha Singh. Anushka contributed 44 off 86 balls, including four fours and a six, while her partnership with Tanisha added 82 runs and helped India A rebuild.

Tanisha continued to anchor the innings and produced the day’s highest score, making 92 off 166 balls with 12 fours. She missed out on a century when Tess Flintoff dismissed her with India A on 313 for six.

Niki Prasad then took charge of the lower middle order. She reached an unbeaten 78 off 99 balls, hitting 11 fours and two sixes. Her partnership with Tanisha was worth 111 runs and helped India A move beyond the 300-run mark.

India A lost three more wickets after Tanisha’s departure but managed to add valuable runs before stumps. Sayali Satghare made one, Shabnam Shakil scored four and Vaishnavi Sharma contributed six. Niki remained unbeaten alongside Shuchi Upadhyay, who was yet to score.

For Australia A, Lilly Mills and Charli Knott took three wickets each. Mills finished with 3/94 from 31 overs, while Knott returned figures of 3/82 from 24 overs. Flintoff, Milly Illingworth and Frankie Nicklin claimed one wicket apiece.

The match was originally scheduled to be played in Dharamshala but was shifted to Mohali ahead of the fixture. The four-day game is part of Australia A’s multi-format tour of India, which also includes T20 and one-day matches.

At the close of play, India A Women were 351/9 after 100 overs, with Niki Prasad unbeaten on 78. Australia A will look to take the final Indian wicket before beginning its first innings on Day Two.