Maddie Darke’s century hands Australia A series win against India A

Australia A defeated India A in the second List A game of the tour by eight wickets in Mackay on August 16 (Friday). It was a comprehensive win for the Australian side led by Tahlia McGrath, who first restricted the India A batters to 218 and then chased the total down in just 40.2 overs with eight wickets to spare. 

The centurion from the last 50-over contest, Katie Mack, was prolific once again and scored a fluent 68 off 78 deliveries before being dismissed LBW by Sayali Satghare. 

However, her opening partner, Maddy Darke, took full toll on the toothless Indian bowlers and smacked a spectacular 106 not out in just 115 balls. They had an opening partnership of 131, which came at almost run-a-ball. 

Earlier, India A, yet again, had a poor start. Shweta Sehrawat continued her torrid tour with the bat, getting dismissed by Nicola Hancock’s pace for just 11 off 30 deliveries. 

Meanwhile, Priya Punia remained ineffective in this game as well, scoring a solitary run in seven deliveries. Shubha Satheesh batted well for her 24 off 38 deliveries, but once again, it was the pair of Maharashtra’s Tejal Hasabnis and Uttarakhand’s Raghvi Bist who got the crucial runs. 

Hasabnis and Bisht notched up consecutive fifties, adding to their first game scores of 53 and 82 by scoring 63 and 70 in this game, respectively. Their 124-run stand helped India A reach 218. Pacers Hancock and Maitlan Brown and tweakers Charli Knott and Grace Parsons got four wickets each. 

Riding on Mack and Darke's opening partnership, skipper McGrath finished the game quickly and sealed the series with her 32 off 26 deliveries. The Aussies already lead 2-0 in the three-match series, with the last game to be played at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay. 

Brief scores: 

India A Women 218 in 48 overs (Raghvi Bist 70(93), Nicola Hancock 2/27) lost to Australia A Women 221/2 in 40.2 overs (Maddy Darke 106, Katie Mack 68; Sayali Sathghare 1/41) by 8 wickets.

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