The Indian batsmen choked in the death overs as India A lost to Australia A by seven runs in a thrilling encounter of the tri-series tournament between 'A' teams in Pretoria on Thursday.
Glenn Maxwell's magnificent unbeaten 145 off 99 balls helped Australia A score 298 for 8 as Cheteshwar Pujara decided to field after winning the toss.
In their chase, India A were restricted to 291 for 8 despite half-centuries from opener Rohit Sharma (66), Suresh Raina (83) and Ambati Rayudu (70).
It was Australia A’s second win of the one-day tri-angular series also featuring South Africa A.
At one stage, an easy win looked inevitable for the Indians as they needed 23 runs from the last four overs with six wickets in hand.
Nathan Coulter-Nile (3 for 37) left India A stunned when he struck with a double-wicket maiden in the penultimate over, removing Rayudu for 70 and Stuart Binny for a duck. It left them needing 16 runs from the final over - too tall a task for their tail.
Earlier, Maxwell's late blitzkrieg that contained 18 fours and six sixes helped Australia A recover from 152 for 8. Maxwell shared an undefeated 146-run partnership for the ninth wicket with Josh Hazlewood (21).
The big-hitting 24-year-old went from 50 to 100 in just 19 balls, showing the kind of form that saw him earn a suprise $1 million contract with the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
Brief Scores: Australia A 298 for 8 in 50 overs (Glenn Maxwell 145*, Nic Maddinson 52) beat India A 291/8 (Suresh Raina 83, Ambati Rayudu 70, Rohit Sharma 66, Nathan Coultier-Nile 3/37).
