Tushar Deshpande picked up his 100th first-class wicket on the final day of the second unofficial Test between India A and England Lions in Northampton on Monday.
After India A declared their second innings at 417/7, setting a commanding target of 439, the right-arm medium pacer struck early with the new ball to reach the milestone. He had opener Tom Haines caught by Nitish Kumar Reddy for seven to give India A the breakthrough.
Deshpande, who plays for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League, began the second unofficial Test between India A and England Lions on 97 first-class scalps. In the first innings, the 30-year-old bowler picked up the wickets of Tom Haines and Max Holden.
After Deshpande struck early in the second innings, England Lions would lose two more wickets as the second unofficial Test also ended in a draw, like the first.
Never miss an update on Rajasthan Royals—get the latest articles, news, and more by clicking here!
Tushar Deshpande made his first-class debut for Mumbai against Tamil Nadu in a Ranji Trophy game in 2016. He took five wickets, including a four-fer, on his first-class debut.
The pacer, who plays for the Mumbai cricket team in the Ranji Trophy, has played 37 first-class matches in his career. Deshpande has picked up five five-wicket hauls so far with best figures of 6/70 against Railways in 2018.
Rajasthan Royals’ trio of Deshpande, Dhruv Jurel and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who were a part of the India A squad that played against England Lions, all made contributions for the team during the two unofficial Tests.
Dhruv Jurel hit three straight fifties against the English Lions. He scored 94 and 53 not out in the first unofficial Test before making 52 in the first innings of the second.
Yashasvi Jaiswal also smashed a 60-ball 64 against in the second innings of the first unofficial Test.
India A’s tour of England will conclude with an intra-squad match against the senior Indian men’s team in Beckenham on June 13.
