Mackay, Aug 14 (IANS): Half-centuries by Raghvi Bist and Tejal Hasabnis went in vain as opener Katie Mack stepped up to hit a fine 129 and steer Australia ‘A’ to a four-wicket victory in the first one-dayer against India ‘A’ at the Great Barrier Reef Arena here on Wednesday.

India ‘A’ were reduced to 56/3 in 12.3 overs, before Tejal’s 53 off 67 balls, laced with seven fours, and Raghvi’s 82 off 102 deliveries, studded with six boundaries, helped the visitors post 249/9. For Australia ‘A’, Maitlan Brown took 4-23, while Nicola Hancock and Grace Parsons picked two scalps each.

In reply, Katie hit 129 off 126 deliveries, including getting her century off 106 balls, to set up the win for Australia ‘A’. She shared partnerships of 50 with Maddy Darke and 65 with Charli Knott, before stitching a match-winning stand of 135 runs with captain Tahlia McGrath, who made 56 off 61 balls.

Despite a late collapse, Kate Peterson hit the winning runs for Australia ‘A’ with 18 balls to spare, with the Australian team selectors watching the match at the venue. For India ‘A’, pacer Meghna Singh took 2/43, while captain, off-spin all-rounder, Minnu Mani picked 2/53.

With the bat, India ‘A’ were in trouble as Shweta Sehrawat and Priya Punia were taken out by Nicola, while Shubha Satheesh was dismissed by Tahlia. Tejal and Raghvi joined forces for a crucial 55-run stand, followed by the latter stitching stands of 52 and 68 with Minnu and Shipra Giri respectively.

Raghvi’s hopes of getting a century were cut when Maitlan castled her, as the pacer took three wickets in the final over to keep India ‘A’ to a modest total which Australia ‘A’ chased down to keep their winning record intact in the ongoing multi-format tour. The next two games will be played at Mackay on Friday and Sunday respectively.

Brief scores:

India A 249/9 in 50 overs (Raghavi Bist 82, Tejal Hasabnis 53; Maitlan Brown 4-23) lost to Australia A 250/6 in 47 overs (Katie Mack 129, Tahlia McGrath 56; Meghna Singh 2-43, Minnu Mani 2-53) by four wickets