KL Rahul's double disaster: Duck and freak hit-wicket as India A fold for 113 vs New Zealand A

Rahul's nightmare returns to haunt India A in Lincoln

KL Rahul's preparations for the senior Test series suffered a major setback at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln, where the senior batter managed just four runs across two innings in the first unofficial Test between India A and New Zealand A. His twin failures — a duck in the first innings and a freak hit-wicket for four in the second — encapsulated a miserable outing for the experienced campaigner.

First-innings collapse as New Zealand A strike early

New Zealand A won the toss and elected to bowl in the opening four-day fixture, and the decision paid immediate dividends. India A's star-studded top order crumbled, with KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan all falling cheaply on the opening day. Rahul's first dismissal was a familiar tale of poor footwork against the moving ball: Fraser Sheat bowled a delivery outside off stump that moved away, tempting the Indian batter into playing a big drive. Rahul went after the ball without moving his feet enough and edged it to wicketkeeper Mitchell Hay, who made no mistake with the catch. He departed for a duck after facing eight balls.

The rot set in from there. India A were eventually bowled out for 113, with pacer Simon Keene wreaking havoc to claim five wickets on a grass-covered pitch that assisted the seamers. Five India A batters finished with ducks, and only Yash Rathod offered resistance, top-scoring with an unbeaten 44. New Zealand A then piled up 317 in reply to seize a commanding 204-run lead.

The freak that ended Rahul's match

Needing their most experienced batter to deliver in the second innings, India A turned to Rahul — and were let down again. He scored just four runs off 15 balls before walking back in the most unusual fashion. Facing Fraser Sheat once more, Rahul tried to play a delivery outside off stump but ended up edging the ball back towards himself.

According to the match report, "As the ball rolled slowly towards the stumps, Rahul tried to stop it with his bat. However, while attempting to prevent the ball from hitting the wicket, he accidentally struck the off stump with his bat." It initially looked like Rahul had been bowled, but replays revealed the ball was not going to hit the stumps. "Rahul's attempt to stop it resulted in him dislodging the wicket, and he was given out hit-wicket."

Sheat had dismissed him for the second time in the match, leaving Rahul with dismal scores of zero and four. The right-handed batter "looked visibly frustrated as he made his way back to the pavilion," with his second failure compounding India's task of recovering from a 204-run deficit.

What's next

India A and New Zealand A are scheduled to play three unofficial Tests. The second match begins on October 31, followed by the third and final game from November 7. After the unofficial series, the senior Indian team will face New Zealand in a two-match Test series — the first starting in Wellington on November 19 and the second in Christchurch on November 27.