Dambulla | Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's first outing post a thunderous IPL 2026 ended in a muted 14, but seasoned Ruturaj Gaikwad made a composed 101 to lead India A to a respectable 277 for six against Sri Lanka in a tri-series One-day match here on Tuesday.
After electing to bat, India A were pushed to a mini-crisis at 16 for two in five overs after early dismissals of Sooryavanshi and Prabhsimran Singh.
But vice-captain Gaikwad, who fetched his 21st List A hundred in 112 balls, and skipper Tilak Varma (60, 97b) added 150 runs for the fourth wicket to steady India's ship.
There were persistent strong winds across the ground, and the pitch too offered some assistance to the bowlers, making the batting a rather tough proposition.
But Gaikwad and Tilak summoned their years of experience in domestic cricket to resist Lanka's charge after coming together at 69 for three.
The Indian batters were a bit too slow to begin with, collecting their runs mainly through singles and doubles in the initial phase.
The lone display of aggression came when Gaikwad hammered spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth for a six over mid-wicket, which also helped him reach his fifty in 66 balls.
Thereafter he showed a lot more urgency to push the scoring rate ahead. Tilak was more focused on giving strike to his partner. The left-hander reached his fifty in 86 balls just like his partner, lifting slinging pacer Garuka Sanketh for a six over mid-off.
Gaikwad brought up his hundred with a single off left-arm spinner Wanuj Sahan, but got out soon to the same bowler while trying to clear the deep mid-wicket fence.
Tilak too walked back soon, getting castled while trying to ramp pacer Mohamed Shiraz (2/67).
But Ayush Badoni (24, 18b) and Suryansh Shedge (26 not out, 14b) added 46 quick runs as India went past the 270-run mark.
Earlier, there was a lot of focus on Sooryavanshi's outing and he seemed in a good touch while cracking three fours. But a moment of impatience curtailed his stay - an attempted bunt over mid-off off Shiraz ended in the hands of a diving Sahan Arachchige.
Priyansh Arya made a run-a-ball 32 but a terrible mix-up with Gaikwad resulted in the former's run-out.
Brief Scores:
India A: 277/6 in 50 overs (Ruturaj Gaikwad 101, Tilak Varma 60; Mohamed Shiraz 2/67).