Parthiv guides India to 161/5 against Leicestershire

Leicester, Aug 29 (PTI) Opener Parthiv Patel top-scored
with a brilliant 40 as India posted a decent 161 for five
against Leicestershire in a Twenty20 practice match at Grace
Road here Monday.
The visitors were off to a flyer against the domestic
Twenty20 champions but soon lost their way in the middle
before making a strong finish to reach a satisfactory total in
the end.
Openers Parthiv Patel (40) and Ajinkaya Rahane (19) made
52 from 5.4 overs before the progress was bogged down due to
some cheap wickets in the middle overs.
Rohit Sharma (29) then smacked two successive sixes to
power Indians past 150.
The two openers, Patel and Rahane set a cracking pace in
early overs and 50 was up by the fifth over as boundaries came
in profusion.
Patel cut Matthew Hoggard hard over slips in the very
first over and hoisted Abdul Razzaq over mid-on to signal his
intentions.
He then cracked Hoggard superbly through covers and
lofted Razzaq over the bowler's head.
Patel largely monopolised strike but whenever Rahane got
the strike, the latter made a convincing show of defence and
attack.
Rahane favoured onside for his early strokes, flicking
Hoggard to fine leg and then driving Razzaq off the backfoot
to midwicket fence.
The best shot of the stand though was when he drove
Hoggard for boundary at the extra cover.