PHOTOS: Indian batting comes good in drawn Oz warm-up tie

Sachin Tendulkar hit a quickfire 92 before retiring as India's first warm-up match on their tour of Australia against a Chairman's XI ended in a draw after rain forced end of play on Friday.

Tendulkar, who will be looking to notch his 100th international career century in the four-Test series that begins in Melbourne on December 26, grabbed his 92 runs off 132 balls with 15 fours.

He showed class as he went about his innings without much fuss. His strokeplay was magnificient as he got into the groove in time for the first Test.

Tendulkar was smooth as silk against the inexperienced Aussie bowler. He picked off-spinner Glenn Maxwell for special treatment, slamming his to the boundary at will.

He teamed up with VVS Laxman (57) to get some batting practice going. Both batsmen were in fine touch, striking the ball sweetly to punish the Aussie rookie bowlers. Both, then, retired at tea with the tourists on 240 for three chasing 399 for victory.

Tendulkar came to the crease at the dismissal of Gautam Gambhir (35) in the 21st over and gathered his runs over the next 39 overs, facing 132 balls and hitting 15 fours in through his innings.

Tendulkar shared a 132-run fourth wicket stand with an equally elegant Laxman which drove the hosts to despair. Laxman, who took 66 balls for his 50, also retired like Tendulkar after stroking 57 classy runs.

Uncapped opener Ajinkya Rahane (three) and Virat Kohli (one) were the only tourists not to rack up the runs on what has proved to be a good batting surface with skipper Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma (56 not out) also having solid knocks.

None of the Chairman's XI has any realistic chance of making the Australia team for the Test series but spinner Cameron Boyce added a notch to his belt with the wicket of Dravid on his way to figures of two for 74 when the former India skipper was caught for 45 at mid-off by Peter George. He also had the wicket of Kohli against his name.

Gambhir (35) and Rahul Dravid (45) managed useful outings and as the game descended to a farcical level, Rohit Sharma too helped himself to a half century in gathering gloom.

Replying to Cricket Australia's score of 398 for six declared, the Indians got off to a poor start with Rahane being dismissed in the second over, Jake Haberfield doing the damage.

Gambhir, who has not been among the runs of late, and Dravid steadied the innings to some extent with a 71-run partnership for the second wicket.

A spell of rain closed out the game with the final hour of play incomplete.