Shillong, Oct 20: Meghalaya will have to draw on all their batting prowess to save the first Ranji Trophy 2024-25 Elite Group A match after they were made to follow on against Tripura on the third and penultimate day at the MCA Ground here on Sunday.
Resuming this morning on 346/6, Tripura went on to declare on 377/8 and then dismiss the hosts for double Nelson – 222 – thus claiming a first-innings lead of 155, which was enough to enforce the follow-on. At stumps, Meghalaya were 3/0, still requiring another 152 runs to make Tripura bat again, with the most realistic best hope for Meghalaya being a draw if they can bat through on Monday.
Guest professional Ajay Duhan was the epitome of patience and calm in his role as the rock of Meghalaya’s innings. After coming in at No. 3, he batted to the end of the innings and was left unbeaten on 93 from 198 deliveries (13x4s, 1×6).
Ajay brought up his half-century with a hook shot six over fine leg and had to farm the strike later on as he batted with the tail in an attempt to get Meghalaya past the follow-on score. He had a couple of lucky breaks, dropped in the gully on 85 being one of them, but his was a classy and well-appreciated knock.
Several local players got good starts but were not able to press on for big scores. Bamanbha Shangpliang crafted 23 at the top of the order, while Kishan Lyngdoh played a brief but entertaining cameo of 21 from 15 deliveries before he became one of half a dozen victims for MB Mura Singh, Tripura’s most successful bowler. The pacer ultimately claimed 6/52 in 26.4 overs.
Further down the order, Akash Kumar Choudhary kept Ajay company in a 49-run seventh-wicket partnership before falling for 23.
Meghalaya had a tricky half an hour to face at the start of their second innings but clouds came to the rescue and bad light brought play to an end a little early, with the openers breathing a sigh of relief but knowing they would have a lot to do on Monday.
