With teenage prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s stunning 94 off 29 balls laying the groundwork for a spectacular victory, India A won the Tri-Series championship in style on Sunday at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium by defeating Sri Lanka A by 66 runs in the final.

Despite several spirited contributions from their middle and lower orders, Sri Lanka A battled hard but was ultimately bowled out for 311 in 47. 1 overs in pursuit of a challenging goal of 378. After falling to three wickets for 75 runs, the hosts were immediately under pressure and had a lot of work to do against a well-managed Indian bowling attack.

With a well-compiled 52 and a 53-run fourth wicket partnership with captain Sahan Arachchige, who made 38, Sadeera Samarawickrama made an attempt to resuscitate the chase. But Sri Lanka A was unable to create the continuous momentum needed to complete a chase of this size due to regular wickets.

The situation grew more challenging for the hosts when they were reduced to 177/6. Vanuja Sahan then launched a valiant counterattack, scoring 62 runs and forming a critical 77-run seventh-wicket partnership with Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, who scored 39. India A was always in command since the needed rate continued to increase, despite the fact that their position temporarily raised hopes of a late comeback and helped lower the margin of defeat.

Yash Thakur and Vipraj Nigam consistently made crucial blows to disrupt Sri Lanka’s pursuit, leading India’s bowling effort with three wickets apiece. India A won the title by closing out the innings thanks to Anukul Roy’s two wickets, Ashok Sharma’s one, and captain Tilak Varma’s one.

Prior to this, India A put on a batting masterclass to score an incredible 377/9 in their 50 overs after losing the toss and being invited to bat first.

The 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who once again demonstrated why he is considered one of the most promising young players in Indian cricket, took the innings. From the beginning, the left-handed batsman launched into the Sri Lankan assault, reaching a half-century in just 11 deliveries, which is also the quickest half-century in List A cricket.

Sooryavanshi hit 10 fours and eight sixes in his outstanding 29-ball innings, falling just six runs short of a century. He combined forces with Priyansh Arya to give India A a dream start, with the opening pair putting up 132 runs in just 53 balls and putting the opposition on the back foot right away.

Before his departure, Arya contributed a rapid 39, but the stage for a large total had already been set. Then, Captain Tilak Varma took control of the middle innings, hitting a calm 67 runs off of 90 balls. To maintain the scoreboard moving, he first formed an 84-run combination with Ruturaj Gaikwad (who scored 40 runs) before adding another 63 runs with Kumar Kushagra (36).

Nishant Sindhu (16), Vipraj Nigam (27), and Anukul Roy, who added the finishing touches to India’s innings with his 39-run effort, all made additional worthwhile contributions. India A were able to keep their aggressive attitude throughout and score an amazing 377/9 thanks to their efforts.

Although Kugathas Mathulan, Ravindu Fernando, and Vanuja Sahan all took two wickets for Sri Lanka A, the bowlers had trouble holding back India’s strong batting order.

Brief Scores:
India A 377/9 in 50 overs (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 94, Tilak Varma 67, Ruturaj Gaikwad 40; Wanuja Sahan 2-39, Ravindu Fernando 2-72)
Sri Lanka A all out for 311 runs in 47.1 overs (Wanuja Sahan 62, Sadeera Samarawickrama 52; Yash Thakur 3-45, Vipraj Nigam 3-60)