International Cricket

India A Tour Sri Lanka A 1st Unofficial Test Galle Recap: Akash Deep Six-For

Karthik Menon 19 May 2026 Updated 19 May 2026 ~4 min read ~729 words

Akash Deep bowls at Galle in the India A unofficial Test against Sri Lanka A

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Galle in June is a curator's puzzle: the southwest monsoon is starting to whip through Sri Lanka's south coast and the pitch behaves like a slow turner with intermittent assistance for medium pace. India A walked into the 2026 tour's first unofficial Test with a brief — give touring opportunities to fringe Test candidates, see how the bowling group reads conditions. Akash Deep took a six-for, Sai Sudharsan made 121 in the second innings, and the visitors went into day five with a 240-plus lead and most of the second day in hand.

Akash Deep's six-wicket haul, broken down

Akash Deep's figures of 6 for 58 from 22 overs were the standout. The right-arm seamer hit a heavy length in the first hour, exploiting the seam-friendly window before the surface dried out. Four of his wickets came in the first innings against Sri Lanka A's top order: Pathum Nissanka driven on a clipped lbw, Dhananjaya de Silva caught at first slip, Charith Asalanka beaten by a ball that held its line, and the No. 5 squared up. He returned to mop up the tail with two strikes after lunch on day two.

Sai Sudharsan's second-innings 121

Sai Sudharsan's first-innings 38 was a low return for a top-three batter who has been positioned as a Test prospect. The 121 in the second dig was the redemptive scorecard entry: 174 balls, 13 boundaries, two sixes, both off the part-time off-spin of Kamindu Mendis. The left-hander reached his hundred just before tea on day four, and pushed the lead past 240 by stumps. The conversion of starts has been the question on his Test profile for two years — this answers the immediate one.

Sri Lanka A's response and Saurabh Kumar's grip

Sri Lanka A were bowled out for 198 in the first innings. Their second-innings task — facing India A's 240-plus target with 90 overs to bat — is the kind of fourth-innings ask Galle has historically delivered both ways. The pitch is wearing slow. Saurabh Kumar's left-arm spin, with 3 wickets across the first innings, will be the main weapon. Devdutt Padikkal's off-spin was used sparingly but bowled a tight 4-3-3-1 spell.

Captain's read: Shubman Gill leads India A

Shubman Gill, captaining India A for the second time in 2026, opted to bat first on a damp morning toss-day. The bet paid off — the surface dried quickly, the first innings was on a true wicket for the most part, and India A's 296 set up the contest. His captaincy of Akash Deep — late switches between over and around the wicket, four-over bursts at high pace — was the difference.

Selection picture

For the Test side ahead of the home season, three names have improved their case in this match. Sai Sudharsan's 121 keeps him in the No. 3 conversation. Akash Deep is now arguably the second-best Indian seamer behind Jasprit Bumrah on current form. Saurabh Kumar has demonstrated control on a turning surface; with Ravindra Jadeja's workload management likely to scale back across the next 12 months, his Test entry is closer than it appeared in March.

What to watch on day five

If India A bat on for an hour, the lead will be 280-plus. Sri Lanka A's top order — Nissanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Asalanka — will need to bat for 75 overs minimum. The forecast is for a clear day; the pitch will not save them. India A need 10 wickets and have the bowlers to take them.

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Karthik Menon

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Cricket analyst and content writer at CricJosh, covering International with 93 articles published.

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