Virender Sehwag's experiment to bat in the middle-order failed, and Gautam Gambhir's woeful run of form continued, as India 'A' were restricted to 191 for 3 at stumps on the second day of the second unofficial 'Test' against West Indies 'A', at the Jawaharlal Nehru National College of Engineering cricket ground, in Shimoga, on Thursday.
A 25-member West Indies contingent, including support staff, checked in at Kolkata on Monday to play a three-day practice match and the opening Test of the two-match series that will be the swansong for batting great Sachin Tendulkar.
Kirk Edwards and Darren Bravo scored half centuries as West Indies battled to save the first Test against New Zealand but were still 228 runs from making the hosts bat again at the close of play on the third day in Dunedin on Thursday.
Ross Taylor scored his 10th Test century and surpassed 4,000 career runs to anchor New Zealand's 307 for six at the close of play on the first day of the second Test against the West Indies at the Basin Reserve on Wednesday.
Opener Kraigg Brathwaite continued his good run with another splendid century while Narasingh Deonaraine cracked a flamboyant 93 as the second unofficial Test between India 'A' and West Indies 'A' ended in a tame draw in Shimoga
Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor capped a dominant day's play for New Zealand with centuries as the hosts reached 367 for three at the close of the first day of the first Test against West Indies at University Oval in Dunedin on Tuesday.
Sachin Tendulkar was ensured a perfect farewell by his teammates as India thrashed a hapless West Indies by an innings and 126 runs at the Wankhede on Saturday, in well two and a half days, to complete a 2-0 whitewash in a lopsided contest.
Cricket aficionados' love, even passion, for their "god" Sachin Tendulkar is unlikely to recede even after his playing days.
Veteran pacer Zaheer Khan's sensational three-wicket burst helped India 'A' crush West Indies 'A' by an innings and 54 runs in the third and final unofficial Test to level the three-match series, in Hubli.
Led by the in-form Cheteshwar Pujara, India 'A' will eye revenge for the ODI series loss when they take on a confident West Indies 'A' in the unofficial three-Test series, starting at the Gangotri Glades, in Mysore, on Wednesday.
Promising all-rounder Parveez Rasool took five wickets, but West Indies 'A' hit back after being dismissed for 429 in the first unofficial Test at the Gangothri Glades Cricket Ground in Mysore, on Thursday. At stumps on the second day, India 'A' were in a spot of bother at 124 for three, with skipper Cheteshwar Pujara back in the pavilion.
Off-spinner Sunil Narine was already indicating he would be a factor later in the game as he put New Zealand's batsmen under immense pressure on the second day of the third Test on Friday before the hosts finished on 156 for three at the close of play.
At stumps, India were comfortably placed at 157 for 2, after bundling out the West Indies for a meagre 182 by tea, riding on left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha's five-wicket haul.
On a day of fluctuating fortunes, West Indies 'A' batted brilliantly in the first two sessions and the India 'A' bowlers fought back strongly in the last session, to share the honours at the end of Day 1 in the third unofficial 'Test' at KSCA stadium in Hubli on Wednesday.
Final Test: Exit Sachin Tendulkar, by writer-journalist Dilip D'Souza, is a close scrutiny of the batting legend's last Test, against the West Indies, at the Wankhede stadium, in Mumbai, last November.
With a strike rate of 115, Shikhar Dhawan is the MVP from the India-West Indies series according to Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji.
The International Cricket Council released the provisional squads of the 12 teams for next year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand on Friday. However, co-hosts Australia and minnows Ireland decided against releasing the provisional list although they submitted 30 names to the parent body within the stipulated deadline.