WA vs IN, warm-up: Western Australia XI 168 for 8 (Hobson 64, Short 52, Ashwin 3-32) beat Indians 132 for 8 (Rahul 74, Lance Morris 2-23, Kelly 2-26) by 36 runs

KL Rahul hit a patient 74, but India lost by 36 runs in preparation for the T20 World Cup on a fast WACA pitch against a strong WA XI attack. Other than stand-in captain Rahul, India’s batters were unsuccessful in their chase after a close 13-run victory in their first warm-up on Monday. India’s second-highest scorer was Hardik Pandya, who had 17. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the regular captain, did not bat during the WA XI innings.

The uneasy loss

India’s openers, Rahul and Rishabh Pant, started slowly in pursuit of 169 against the effective pace attack of the Perth Scorchers, the BBL champions. Pant once more struggled with fluency as he attempted several slogs against Jason Behrendorff’s precise left-arm pace and missed.

India’s top order appeared uneasy on the bouncy pitch when Pant finally made contact but missed to the deep. Lance Morris, a speedster in good form, entered the attack in the seventh over after being held back and demonstrated why he might be Australia’s fastest bowler.

Morris, fresh off a Player-of-the-Match performance for WA against New South Wales last week, bowled hard right away, which was too much for Deepak Hooda, who got caught behind.

Pandya was bowled by young Hamish McKenzie’s left-arm spin after a brief counterattack, leaving India at 58 for 3, with Rahul playing particularly poorly. India’s required run rate grew out of control, and Rahul didn’t have any help as his teammates lost wickets.

The exception was Rahul, who batted cautiously before opening with a couple of sixes off Behrendorff in the 18th over to give India a chance at an unlikely victory.However, his dismissal in the subsequent over effectively ended the game, and India split their Perth warm-up matches.

After choosing to bat in sunny conditions, WA XI maintained complete control of the game. The inclusion of BBL star Josh Philippe bolstered their batting, but the opener fell to Arshdeep Singh in the third over.

Quicks Arshdeep and Bhuvneshwar Kumar created sharp bounce on a quick deck, just like in the first game, but wickets were harder to come by after that. In the sixth over, veteran spinner R Ashwin, who did not play on Monday, entered the attack. He was promptly smashed by D’Arcy Short, who played with Nick Hobson and scored 110 runs in a blistering partnership.

Hobson, who is an accountant by day and plays for Perth Scorchers, was particularly aggressive against spinners and hit four sixes in his 41-ball score.

Western Australia vs India, 2nd Warm-Up Match

WA – 168/8(20)
IND – 132/8(20)

Kl Rahul – 74(55)
Hardik Pandya – 17(9)
D Karthik – 10(14)
R Pant – 9(11)
D Hooda – 6(9)
Axar Patel – 2(7)
Harshal Patel – 2(10)
R Ashwin – 2*(4)
Bhuvneshwar – 0(1)

Western Australia Won by 36 runs.

— Cricket Mantri (@VineethNagarjun) October 13, 2022

However, Ashwin’s dismissal sparked a WA collapse, as he took wickets in consecutive balls to remove captain Ashton Turner and Sam Fanning, who scored a half-century in game one but was unwisely trying to reverse sweep on his first ball.

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Despite the fact that captain Rohit was still giving instructions, India were skilled on the field, highlighted by two direct-hit run outs, and well marshalled by Rahul. To the dismay of the locals, Kohli did not participate in the two warm-up matches that were held in Perth. However, he did field and spent some time in the first slip and deep. Before play, he also ran laps. With the $5 entry fee going to the WA Cricket Foundation, a large crowd of 2500 fans attended.