Shillong, Nov 29 – Baroda’s commanding performance on day two of their U-19 men’s Cooch Behar Trophy Elite Group A match virtually batted Meghalaya out of contention. At the end of the second day’s play at the MCA Ground in Polo, Baroda had amassed 608/6, taking a substantial first-innings lead of 430 runs.
Resuming their innings on 55/0, Baroda’s openers capitalized on the favorable conditions, putting together a massive 274-run partnership for the first wicket. Captain Nitya J Pandya led the charge, hammering an impressive 177 runs from 183 balls, including 33 fours. Despite being in complete control, Pandya’s innings ended when he mistimed a big shot and was caught by Shavian Blah off the bowling of Gaurav Thakuria.
While Gaurav (1/89 from 11 overs) had a costly outing, his leg-spin provided the breakthrough. However, his efforts were short-lived, as Smit Rathva took over and began attacking fiercely. Rathva’s onslaught was relentless, reaching a brilliant double century off 245 balls, including 21 fours and 5 sixes. He was eventually dismissed for 201 by Angkit Tamang (2/127 from 25 overs).
From a commanding 482/1, Baroda continued to pile on the runs, reaching 608/6, with a third century from Vishvas, who made 143 runs off 127 balls, hitting 21 fours and 2 sixes.
Meghalaya’s Salchang M Sangma (3/83 from 12 overs) was the standout bowler for the hosts, taking three wickets in quick succession, even coming close to a hat-trick. Despite his efforts, Meghalaya’s bowlers struggled to keep up with Baroda’s dominance.
With one day left in the match, Meghalaya faces an uphill task. The team will look to wrap up Baroda’s innings quickly and then try to make up for the massive first-innings deficit with the bat.
