Afghanistan A edge India A by four runs on DLS as rain ends Dambulla chase
India A racked up 349 for 9 and looked in control, but rain and the DLS par score handed Afghanistan A a four-run win in the Sri Lanka A tri-series.
Jun 12, 2026
India A piled up 349 for 9 in Dambulla and still walked off second best. Rain and bad light swept across the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium midway through Afghanistan A’s reply on June 11, and when the umpires ended play with the visitors on 177 for 2, they were four runs in front of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern par score. That margin settled it. Afghanistan A took the second match of the Sri Lanka A tri-series by four runs.
It was a curious way to lose a game India A had controlled for most of the afternoon. They were asked to bat first and built a total that should have been comfortably out of a second-string side’s reach. The weather had other ideas.
Prabhsimran leads the India A charge
Prabhsimran Singh set the tone at the top with 84 off 69 balls, an innings stacked with 14 fours that kept the scoreboard ticking from the opening over. Captain Tilak Varma and Ruturaj Gaikwad both made 66, Tilak off 69 balls and Gaikwad off 80, and between them they gave the innings its spine through the middle overs.
The eye-catching contribution came from 15-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who smashed 44 off just 22 balls with nine fours before holing out six short of a fifty. The youngster’s burst lifted India A towards 350 in a match cut to 49 overs a side, and Suryansh Shedge chipped in with a brisk 29 to carry the total to 349 for 9.
Imran and Bahir Shah keep Afghanistan ahead of the rate
Chasing a revised DLS target of 294 from 38 overs, Afghanistan A needed to stay ahead of the par score rather than overhaul the full total, and that is exactly what their top order managed. Captain Imran Mir anchored the reply with an unbeaten 75 from 70 balls, and Bahir Shah was right alongside him on 51 not out from 52 when the players walked off. Hassan Eisakhil had earlier kept the chase moving with 34 from 29.
The pair refused to take risks they did not need to take. With the floodlights not in operation and the light fading, both batters knew the game was likely to be settled on the par score, so they simply kept India A’s bowlers at arm’s length. When play was stopped at 177 for 2, Afghanistan A were four runs to the good, and the match never resumed.
Imran was named player of the match for the innings that carried his side home.
What it means for the tri-series
The result evens things up early in the competition. India A had opened their campaign with an eight-run win over hosts Sri Lanka A on June 9, so this was their first stumble of the tournament. The tri-series runs through to a final on June 21, with each side meeting the other two twice in the league phase and the top two going through.
There is little time for India A to dwell on it. The squad is loaded with players pushing for senior recognition, and another batting display like this one, on a day without the weather closing in, should put them back in a strong position.