India A will be taking on the unsettled South Africa A side in the final league game of the triangular series at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Thursday.
India A will be eyeing a berth in the tri-series final against Australia, which will be played on Friday at the same venue. And on the other hand, South Africa will be looking for their first victory of the tour.
The fixtures of the tri-series have been changed more than once. The South Africa A players were hospitalised last week due to food poisoning but they were released on Monday and were declared fit to play against Australia A.
Australia A continued with their unbeaten run in the tour as they yet again thrashed South Africa A by 108 runs - courtesy, an electric ton from Aussie wicketkeeper and skipper Matthew Wade on Wednesday. Peter Handscomb made scored 52 runs and was instrumental in building 350 plus partnerships for Australia A.
Lonwabo Tsotsobe was the most successful bowler for the Proteas as he picked up three wickets for 50 runs in his spell of 10 overs. Deal Elgar was the highest scorer (64) in the Proteas batting line up, followed by Khaya Zondo.
"I think if I were a doctor I would tell you exactly what happened. But we had dinner like normal people. Most of the guys got sick. I do not really know what was the main cause. I should think that all the guys are fit to play tomorrow. It all depends on the advises of the doctor, who had said what we should be doing. They have seen of it and hopefully by tomorrow the doctors would declare them fit. I think I am bowling well at the moment. I am hitting my lines and length. I need to try and increase the pace that I am bowling. Obviously coming from injuries, it is not that easy. I think I will get there," Tsotsobe told reporters after losing out to Australia A on Wednesday.
Australia A bowlers were right on the money yet again. Nathan Coulter-Nile picked up two wickets in seven overs by giving away just eight runs. Ashton Agar, who was the star performer against India A in their previous match, also picked up three wickets.
India A on the other hand managed to win only one match under the leadership Unmukt Chand in this tri-series and that was against South Africa A. That win earned them a bonus point as well, which gives them an edge to reach the final over the Proteas. South Africa A will have to defeat India A by a healthy margin in order to reach the triangular series final.
Mayank Agarwal has been the pick as the batsman for India A. He scored an unbeaten century against South Africa A and a gritty half-century against Australia A in their last match. He would be looking forward to emulate that form in the upcoming match against the Proteas on Thursday.
Where to watch live:
The sixth ODI of the triangular series between India A and South Africa A is scheduled for a 9:30am local time(5am BST, 2pm AT, 12am EST) start with the live coverage available on StarSports 2 and StarSports HD 2. Vieweres in India can stream the match live on Starsports.com.
